October 5, 2020
R. J. Corman Railroad Company, LLC Awarded Two CRISI Grants for Ohio and Tennessee Lines
NICHOLASVILLE, Ky - R. J. Corman Railroad Company was awarded two CRISI Grants that will benefit their rail lines in both Ohio and Tennessee. These two grants will go toward improving the safety, connectivity, and productivity of the various R. J. Corman short lines subsequently improving the local and regional economy.
The Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements Program (CRISI), initiated in 2017, is a U.S. Department of Transportation program that funds projects that improve the safety, efficiency, and reliability of intercity passenger and freight rail. Of the available $311,772,500 for eligible candidates in 2020, R. J. Corman will receive a total of $4,433,521 between the two grants.
One of the CRISI grants, benefitting R. J. Corman rail lines in Ohio, will help fund the Ohio Rail Development Commission’s (ORDC) Keep Ohio Moving Project with an amount of $2,226,315. Those funds will be supplemented by the ORDC and private investment by R. J. Corman. This funding will be applied toward improving four different corridors across the state and will rehabilitate areas on both R. J. Corman’s Western Ohio Lines and Cleveland Line by replacing 21,000 ties and surfacing 28 miles of ballast. Improving these corridors will continue to foster economic development along Ohio’s railroads as well as increase the overall safety and efficiency of the operations. These developments will provide multiple opportunity zones for expanded and new business development in the area.
The other CRISI grant, benefitting Tennessee, will help fund improvements to R. J. Corman’s Memphis Line by contributing $2,207,206 along with additional funding from the Montgomery County Rail Authority and R. J. Corman. The project will focus on the rehabilitation of the Cumberland River Bridge located on the Memphis, Tennessee line. The improvements will provide a long-term solution by refurbishing and automating the swing span turning mechanism of the steel through-truss swing bridge built in 1891. The automation of the swing span turning mechanism will be controlled through remote dispatch which greatly reduces the need for human personnel to manually operate the turning mechanism. As with the Ohio grant, this will significantly improve the safety and efficiency of the bridge by eliminating current delays, risk of failure, and potential hazards to railroad workers, and will ultimately improve the longevity of railroad service to the area.
These grants were made possible through the collaboration of Tennessee Federal Delegation, Ohio Federal Delegation, Ohio Rail Development Commission, Seneca Group, Montgomery County Officials, Montgomery Country Rail Authority, and R. J. Corman representatives.
R. J. Corman Railroad Company, LLC operates 14 short line railroads in 10 states and is a subsidiary of R. J. Corman Railroad Group, LLC. Altogether, the company employs approximately 1,500 people in 23 states. In addition to short line railroad and switching operations, R. J. Corman companies provide a broad scope of services to the railroad industry such as emergency response, track material distribution, track construction, and signal design and construction.
