Abandoned Rail Corridors in Texas: A Policy and Infrastructure Evaluation

The use of existing and abandoned railroad rights-of-way has been a proven method of acquiring linear corridors for the construction of roadways since the formation of the Texas Highway Department. Either paralleling existing rail lines or re-using corridors first used by railroad companies exhibited tremendous wisdom since the railroads had dictated development patterns throughout the state in the half-century prior to the road building era. The long period of railroad system consolidation since the end of World War II has resulted in the loss of many abandoned rail corridors that could now be extremely valuable if put to use either as new transportation corridors (roadway, transit, etc.) or multiuse recreational trails (hiking, biking, skating, etc.). This project evaluated the current Texas Administrative Code statutes governing the Texas Department of Transportation acquisition and use of abandoned rail corridors, suggested changes to these existing statutes, characterized the abandoned rail lines in the state, and identified potential uses of existing and prospective abandoned corridors in Texas.

• Record URL:
  http://tti.tamu.edu/documents/0-6268-1.pdf
• 
• Record URL:
  https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/20314
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Research Project Title: Acquisition, Uses, & Funding Options for Abandoned Rail Corridors. Report Date: December 2010; Published: March 2011.
• Corporate Authors:

  Texas Transportation Institute

  Texas A&M University System, 3135 TAMU
  College Station, TX  United States  77843-3135

  Texas Department of Transportation

  Research and Technology Implementation Office, P.O. Box 5080
  Austin, TX  United States  78763-5080

  Federal Highway Administration

  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Authors:
  • Morgan, Curtis
  • Warner, Jeffery
  • Huang, Jun (Jade)
  • Barkley, Rebecca
  • Loftus-Otway, Lisa
  • 0000-0001-5143-9513
  • Hutson, Nathan
  • Ross, Alejandra Cruz
  • Niven, Rachel
• Publication Date: 2011-3

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Web
• Edition: Technical Report
• Features: Appendices; Figures; Maps; Photos; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 280p

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Abandonment; Highway planning; Policy; Property acquisition; Right of way (Land); State laws; Trails
• Uncontrolled Terms: Corridor preservation; Railroad corridors
• Geographic Terms: Texas
• Subject Areas: Highways; Planning and Forecasting; Policy; I21: Planning of Transport Infrastructure;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01340820
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: FHWA/TX-11/0-6268-1, Report 0-6268-1
• Contract Numbers: Project 0-6268
• Files: NTL, TRIS, USDOT, STATEDOT
• Created Date: May 25 2011 8:34AM