Study: MARC service expansion possible, but obstacles persist

Feb. 10—Maryland's Department of Transportation continues to look at increasing MARC train service along the system's Brunswick Line that serves Frederick County, but the possibilities face administrative, environmental, and other logistical challenges, according to a new report.

The report from the Maryland Transit Administration, which oversees MARC service, looks at possibilities for expanding service along the Brunswick Line.

That line runs from Union Station in Washington, D.C., through Montgomery County and along the Potomac River, through Point of Rocks and Brunswick to Harpers Ferry and Martinsburg, West Virginia.

The line also has a spur that runs to two stations in Frederick, including a station on East Street in the city's downtown.

The study's options include:

— adding one to five trains for reverse-peak rush-hour service

— having up to eight roundtrip weekend trains

— off-peak service through the middle of the day, possibly hourly

— additional rush-hour service in both directions

— adding up to two trains for late-night service from Washington.

The study also looks at three options for extending service to Hagerstown, as well as one that would extend service from Martinsburg out to Cumberland and Hancock.

The transit administration is soliciting public input at brunswick@mdot.maryland.gov. It plans to submit a feasibility study to the General Assembly by the summer, according to the administration's website.

Brunswick has supported expanded MARC service for some time, Mayor Nathan Brown said Friday.

Midday service would provide more options for people who use the train to get back and forth, while weekend service could help people visit the C&O Canal and other local tourism areas, he said.

"We've heard a lot from people about wanting those opportunities," Brown said.

Some people already take the train on Friday evenings and spend the weekend — increased service would help allow more of that, he said.

Dave Ziedelis, executive director of Visit Frederick, which promotes local tourism, said more MARC service would help Brunswick and other areas of the county.

Additional service could help with the opportunity for day trips to Brunswick or Frederick, Ziedelis said.

Washington also gets a lot of international tourists who tend to stay longer and explore the entire region, Increased train service could help draw them for overnight stays in Frederick and around the county, he said.

Frederick has been a longtime advocate of increased service on the Brunswick Line, said Richard Griffin, director of economic development for the city.

The city has invested in Carroll Creek Linear Park and in transit-friendly development around the East Street MARC station, as well as ample parking for commuters in several nearby garages and surface lots, he said.

A long-planned hotel and conference center along Carroll Creek would be within walking distance of the East Street station.

"Increased service provides flexibility for midday returns to Frederick from D.C., as well as the possibility of future weekend service," Griffin wrote in an email Friday.

But while the increased service provides many tantalizing possibilities, the study outlines several obstacles to providing more trains.

With the exception of a little more than 3 miles of the line to Frederick, MARC operates on tracks owned by CSX.

"While supportive of Maryland's commuter rail program, CSX, as a host railroad, can have different objectives and priorities than MDOT MTA," the report said. "America's import/export market is growing, and container traffic is evolving, which corresponds with increasing demand on freight corridors. The Brunswick Line is a central element of CSX's freight network and provides CSX with critical connectivity between the Mid-Atlantic and Midwest."

Enhancing service would also require adding additional tracks in key sections of the line, several of which present constraints with space or rights of way, according to the report.

The report identified more than 250 separate constraints in the corridor, ranging from existing development, historic bridges, Metro's Red Line, and public roads, among others.

A nearly 8-mile section between Silver Spring and Union Station face conflicts from Metro's Red Line and MTA's own planned Purple Line, while existing development, infrastructure and Metro facilities would complicate adding a third track between Twinbrook and Shady Grove in Montgomery County.

Meanwhile, increasing train frequency between Point of Rocks and Harpers Ferry would mean mitigating the effects of the Potomac River's floodplain, as well as changes to CSX's Brunswick Yard.

About 19 miles of the Brunswick Line are in the Potomac's floodplain, stretching from Harpers Ferry to the Monocacy River east of Point of Rocks, according to the report.

"These conditions not only make additional infrastructure more challenging to construct, but also impact the reliability of existing and proposed service," the report said.

Follow Ryan Marshall on Twitter: @RMarshallFNP