Passenger trains are returning to Wake Forest. So where should the station be built?

The N.C. Department of Transportation has begun an ambitious effort to extend passenger rail service from Raleigh to Wake Forest, which begs the question: Where will the trains stop in Wake Forest?

NCDOT is studying how a station might work downtown, on the parking lot where the town’s former train depot once stood. After a kickoff meeting in June, the state is gathering feedback at other events in town and through an online survey.

The idea of a downtown station is contentious. Supporters say the heart of Wake Forest is a logical place for riders to begin and end their trip and that a downtown station could help draw visitors.

But critics say a train station could overwhelm the small historic downtown with traffic and station-related development. And something everyone seems to agree on is that parking will be a challenge, both for train riders and people visiting downtown businesses.

Mayor Vivian Jones thinks downtown would be a great place for the station but acknowledges that “it’s a tight space.”

“There wouldn’t be much parking there, so we would have to accommodate parking somewhere close by,” Jones said in an interview. “We haven’t quite figured out exactly where that would be at this point.”

The station would be more than a train depot. NCDOT refers to it as a “mobility hub,” where the train meets other modes of transportation people take to their final destination, says Brennon Fuqua, interim director of NCDOT’s Integrated Mobility Division.

“It’s what happens when people get off of the train,” Fuqua said. “It’s how are we making sure that people are safe and comfortable and also have connectivity to whatever their next mode of transportation is, whether that’s walking or riding their bike or anything like that. So the mobility hubs really become the center of activity for these communities.”

NCDOT created guidelines for transit-oriented development for three potential mobility hubs in the Wake Forest area: downtown; the old Forestville part of town off South Main Street, and near the former Burlington Mills complex off U.S. 1.

But town officials would really like to see the station downtown, so the feasibility study is focused there, said Grady McCollum, the project manager for NCDOT.

First of several new train stations

NCDOT is also studying where to put mobility hubs in other communities along the so-called S-line, the rail corridor between Raleigh and Richmond, Virginia, that both states plan to rebuild for passenger service. Other locations include Youngsville, Franklinton, Henderson and Norlina.

The Wake Forest station comes first, as NCDOT builds the first leg of the line between Raleigh and Richmond. Other steps include laying new tracks and replacing several railroad crossings in Wake County with bridges, including at Rogers Road in Wake Forest.

The state has received a nearly $1.1 billion federal grant for the project; NCDOT and Amtrak will provide a combined 20% match, bringing the total to more than $1.3 billion. The state hopes Amtrak can begin running Piedmont trains from Wake Forest through Raleigh, Durham and Greensboro to Charlotte in 2030.

For more information, including a link to the survey, go to the town’s website, www.wakeforestnc.gov/, and search “S-line Project.” Representatives of NCDOT will answer questions about the station study at three upcoming events in Wake Forest:

▪ July 11, from 3 to 5 p.m., at the Northern Community Food Security Team Mobile Food Market at 350 E. Holding Ave.

▪ July 12, from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. at Friday Night on White on Owen Avenue near the dessert trucks.

▪ July 13, from 8 a.m. to noon at Wake Forest Farmer’s Market, 235 S. Taylor St.