New Hampshire owns 73 miles of mostly unused and rusting railroad line between Concord and Lincoln.
This railroad line is an example of what is wrong with transportation policy in the Granite State.
Purchased in 1975 from a bankrupt Boston & Maine Railroad, this line has never served any major industry. Today, it’s down to two customers, with the N.H. Army National Guard being one. Rail can be successful only where there is a presence of people, manufacturing or commodities. This doesn’t exist north of Concord, and it hasn’t for a long time.
This rail line needs capital investment. All of it is speed restricted to 10 mph, and its tariffs can’t compete with nearby Interstate 93. The state has no strategy to bring this line into the intermodal-supply-chain-based 21st century because rail just isn’t a priority in this state.
If rail isn’t a priority for the state, why should it be for the taxpayers that are paying for it? The answer to this question is why the state should sell this rail.
The real estate, especially in the Lakes Region, would find re-use and multi-use in the growing and job-creating recreational tourism economy, which is needed.
This would be good transportation policy instead of the direction it’s headed in now.
STEVEN J. CONNOLLY
Bethlehem