Four Ways Norfolk Southern Is Partnering to Support Passenger Rail

With more than 19,200 miles of track stretching across 22 states, Norfolk Southern plays a vital role in connecting communities and powering the economy. From moving the goods that fuel the nation to linking people across towns, cities and states, rail has long been an integral part of America’s success story.

In addition to moving freight, NS has also played an industry-leading role in hosting new and existing passenger services, working with passenger rail partners to find solutions that balance the needs of the company’s freight network and the customers it serves with those of its communities.

Leading with results and collaboration

Over the last several years, NS has made major strides in helping to boost passenger rail options while preserving freight rail connections critical to the economy. Thanks to strong collaboration with state partners, NS has supported the launch of 11 new roundtrip Amtrak train starts – or 22 trains per day – in the last 15 years. That’s more than any other Class I railroad and reflects a deliberate approach to passenger rail growth that complements our freight operations.

“Rail works best when freight and passenger services work together,” said Amtrak Executive Vice President, Strategy & Planning Jennifer Mitchell. “Amtrak values Norfolk Southern’s partnership and shared commitment to performance, safety and reliability. By working together, we’re not only improving the experience for passengers and freight customers — we’re also strengthening the rail network and delivering meaningful benefits to the communities we all serve.”

In addition to launching more service, NS’ performance as a host railroad for passenger trains has also outperformed the industry. Thanks to regular reviews of dispatcher training and continuous evaluation of delays, combined with a relentless focus on network fluidity, Amtrak host delays across NS improved 26% YoY. Over the last 12 months through August 2025, only one Class I railroad scored better than NS on Amtrak’s Host Railroad Report, and NS continues to perform strongly as a host railroad, maintaining the lowest host-responsible delay (HRD) rates of any Class I for the past five months. These results reflect our commitment to operational excellence and balanced network performance.

“We’re leading to ongoing improvements in train reliability, schedule iterations and improved network standards and efficiencies,” NS Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer John Orr said in an interview with Railway Age. “We’ve improved safety and service and our financial performance. Amtrak is a great example of how all of those come together in our PSR 2.0 transformation, and they extract value from our overall network capability.”

Creating new opportunities in Virginia

In late 2024, building on the success of a longstanding partnership, Norfolk Southern reached a deal with the Virginia Passenger Rail Authority (VPRA) to expand passenger service in the Commonwealth. The agreement included the sale of the Manassas Line, which will aid in expanding Virginia Railway Express (VRE) service with evening and weekend frequencies, and granted VPRA access to Norfolk Southern’s mainline in order to extend service from the Northeast to the New River Valley at Christiansburg with state-supported Amtrak Virginia service much sooner than previously planned and at a lower cost. The agreement reflects NS’s collaborative posture toward exploring solutions that meet state goals while preserving freight fluidity and long-term freight rail network integrity.

“Together with Norfolk Southern, we have worked hard to put together an agreement that brings more service to Northern Virginia, new service to the New River Valley, and makes rail a strong part of Virginia’s future transportation mix,” said DJ Stadtler, Executive Director of VPRA, in the announcement of the agreement. “We look forward to furthering our partnership with them to develop passenger rail service that travels where Virginians want to go when they want to go.”

Expanding access in Western Pennsylvania

In September 2023, Norfolk Southern and the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) built upon their existing partnership to double service on Amtrak’s Pennsylvanian route, which travels round trip between New York City and Pittsburgh via Harrisburg, running over Norfolk Southern tracks between the latter two cities in Pennsylvania. Under the agreement, the round-trip Amtrak service would run twice daily, and Norfolk Southern and PennDOT would partner to make and maintain critical infrastructure upgrades needed to ensure the lines could support demand. Infrastructure improvements under this agreement are designed to accommodate increased passenger demand while maintaining critical freight throughput.

"This agreement lays the groundwork for expanded passenger rail service in Western Pennsylvania while simultaneously preserving a critical freight rail corridor," PennDOT Secretary Mike Carroll at the time. "Ensuring more Pennsylvanians have access to safe and reliable transportation to Western PA will reduce commute times, help connect hundreds of thousands of residents, and boost local economies. This expansion of service on the Pennsylvanian will provide key mobility and economic benefits."

Growing transportation options in North Carolina

In September 2024, Norfolk Southern sold 22 miles of its O-Line corridor to the City of Charlotte while maintaining an exclusive freight easement, which plans to incorporate the track into plans for a future Red Line commuter rail project aimed at providing a regional connection between Uptown Charlotte and northern towns in Mecklenburg County. The transaction provides a link critical to enabling the city to bring its future transportation plans to life. NS remains focused on ensuring that any passenger-related transactions support long-term freight viability and regional economic goals.

“I greatly appreciate everyone who worked on making this a reality, including city council, city staff, and the leadership of Norfolk Southern,” said Charlotte City Manager Marcus Jones. “Completing this transaction is an important step for our regional mobility aspirations and I am excited that Charlotte was able to deliver this to our community and our region. I look forward to the next steps and what we can accomplish together.”

Learn about Norfolk Southern's public-private partnerships, including our contributions to passenger rail where it complements our freight mission and network strategy, here.