Map showing possible high speed rail service
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from the article:
"Imagine a two-hour train ride between Atlanta and Charlotte going at speeds of 220 miles an hour."
In North Carolina, the preferred corridor follows the Norfolk Southern right-of-way for 10 miles on dedicated passenger tracks, potentially operating at speeds of 80 to 110 miles per hour, from Charlotte Gateway Station to the Charlotte airport station before transitioning to a new greenfield alignment just west of the Catawba River crossing. From the Catawba River, the greenfield alignment extends for approximately 15 miles passing southeast of Belmont, N.C., to a station at South Gastonia near the state line. This route serves three stations in North Carolina: Charlotte Gateway, the Charlotte airport, and South Gastonia. Once on greenfield alignment, this corridor can sustain speeds of up to 125 miles per hour using diesel or 220 miles per hour using electric propulsion, planners said.
In South Carolina, the preferred corridor continues along a greenfield alignment for 65 miles, passing east of Kings Mountain State Park to a route paralleling Interstate 85, approximately 10 miles to the southeast, then diverging westward to a station near the Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport. From the airport, the corridor returns eastward to parallel I-85, approximately 15 miles to the east, for 50 miles to the state line at the Savannah River with a station in Anderson, S.C. The corridor can support speeds of up to 125 miles per hour (diesel) or 220 miles per hour (electric) throughout most of South Carolina until reaching the first stop in Georgia, planners said.
In Georgia, the preferred corridor continues for approximately 80 miles with a station in Athens.
