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The Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) has four phases:
(1) establish the purpose and need;
(2) develop alternatives within the study corridor;
(3) conduct a detailed evaluation of environmental impacts for the alternatives; and
(4) select the preferred alternative.
Establishing the Purpose and Need
Multiple service and alignment alternatives exist within the project study area to connect the Hampton Roads region to Richmond, Virginia and ultimately provide intercity rail service connections to the Southeast, Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions. DRPT and the FRA will address project issues and alternatives as part of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The EIS also will address the area in which this corridor will operate. Issues regarding schedule, operational and capacity constraints, and ridership will be examined.
The first step in the EIS process is to establish the purpose and need. In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), public scoping was initiated to identify corridor needs and alternatives. Scoping meetings are designed to solicit comments from the public to help shape the course of the study and the development of the EIS. Scoping is an early and open process for determining the scope of the project and issues that should be addressed in the study.
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Developing alternatives within the study corridor
During scoping, a wide range of rail and transit solutions or alternatives were presented for public and agency review and comment, including a no-build alternative. The type, location, and need for ancillary facilities (e.g. railroad switching, signaling and maintenance buildings, etc.) was also considered for each alternative.
Descriptions of alternatives can be found in the Final Alternatives Development Report.
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Conduct an initial evaluation of environmental impacts of the alternatives
Once the viable alternatives are identified, the study team will prepare an Alternatives Evaluation. This information will be included as part of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) report when it becomes available. The evaluation includes:
- Air Quality
- Capital and Operating Costs
- Historic Properties
- Indirect Impacts
- Noise
- Park, Recreation and Open Space
- Quality of wetlands and streams
- Ridership
- Social and Economic Impacts
- Threatened and endangered species
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Select the preferred alternative
Once the impacts have been analyzed for each alternative, they are documented in the DEIS and circulated once more for public and agency review and comment. The DEIS is scheduled for completion in spring 2006.
Public hearings are then conducted once ample time has been given for the public and agencies to review the DEIS. Following the public hearings and public comment period, DRPT will present a preferred alternative to the Commonwealth Transportation Board for approval.
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