The Colebrookdale Railroad is in the unfortunate and unavoidable position of having to make extensive improvements to its infrastructure to effectively sustain operations.

That was the grim assessment Nathaniel Guest, executive director of the trust that manages the railroad, delivered to the Berks County commissioners at their weekly budget and operations meeting Thursday afternoon.

And to finance those improvements, the trust is asking the county to invest $25 million.

"What we discovered is that in order to take advantage of some of the opportunities we are going to require capital investments on a level that our capital reserves will not cover," Guest told the board.

"We believe that with infrastructure improvements we can carry more freight business and grow our passenger service. The trust is willing to do its part, but there is a significant infrastructure need. That's where we need the county to help."

How many carloads does this RR handle and what commodities? Are loads originated or only terminated? What Class 1 does it connect with?

When the county purchased the line 10 years ago, the fact that it was not up to code was not known, and now freight customers are backing off using the rail. Kenneth Pick, executive director of the redevelopment authority, says recently two customers decided not to use the line because it did not meet the 286,000-lb standard.

The county would like to see a marketing plan for the railroad, and there is some doubt that the infrastructure upgrades can be fully funded. Berks County Commissioner Kevin Barnhardt says he supports the railroad, but the reason the line was handed over to the Redevelopment Authority was so that the county would not have to make such difficult decisions. He says the figures are “beyond shocking.”

I don't see why Norfolk Southern can't help out since they would directly benefit from the increased freight traffic as well.