I don’t think NCRR has any interest in doing more than managing the corridor and its ancillary real estate. They do have some engineering staff but NCDOT is the one who has the greatest capability.
(Let me preface this next part by saying that I really don’t know what I am talking about, but have been watching this for a long time and am very wary of repeating mistakes. I have also said this so many times that I’m probably making y’all crazy but please forgive my need to vent.)
If GoTriangle is planning to do the Commuter Rail the same way they handled previous efforts (2005 Regional Rail, and DOLRT) then we should just push the pause button. Sounds like, so far, they are - and they just won’t have the capacity to effectively manage it. Hiring consultants is useful but you have to have the capability to effectively manage them. 1.5 FTE working on Commuter Rail just isn’t enough, even where we are now, hypothetically 6 or 7 years before construction. They need a full court press right now, with all parties involved, negotiating for whatever they need in order to build and operate this thing.
Not sure quite what the issue has been in the past (Not enough bureaucratic leverage or authority? Understaffing? Lack of experience? Lack of oversight? Credibility? Transparency?) but GoTriangle does not have a solid track record of successfully negotiating with external stakeholders like railroads. While NCDOT is not batting .1000 on this either (eg when the negotiations for the CRISP CSX/NS grade separation in Charlotte fell through), they do have dozens of success stories under their belt including things like Raleigh Union Station and the rest of the Piedmont Corridor Improvement Project.
NCDOT Rail needs to somehow be on board, and on the hook, as a primary implementing agency for this project. Bringing NCDOT on board as the lead could launch this project from the (considerably advantageous) starting point of an agency that already runs passenger trains and has long-established relationships with FRA, NCRR, and freight RR’s. Building commuter rail competency at the state level could also jump start similar efforts in Charlotte and the Triad as well. GoTriangle does need to stay involved, since they are the channel through which the proceeds from the transit tax are distributed, and because this is a transit project and a liasion with the FTA is needed. But the FTA is quite possibly the least of the concerns. We need an agency with an established track record as a railroad - and NCDOT is it around here.