The MARC Cornerstone Plan lays out how the country’s ninth-largest commuter rail system aims to increase ridership and improve reliability and service. However, some say the latest iteration the Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) released in November has no timeline for some important goals, and lacks information that existed in previous versions of the plan.

Goals for MARC include adding third tracks to the CSX-owned Brunswick and Camden lines, introducing weekend and evening service, and increasing midday service. These two commuter rail routes are notoriously busy during rush hour, but lack rush hour trains.

The most recent iteration was supposed to build on previous MARC Cornerstone Plans from 2007 and 2013. Unlike previous versions, the new one doesn’t have any sort of timeline for some of the most crucial tasks such as installing third tracks, MTA representatives revealed at a public forum held by the Washington Suburban Transit Commission (WSTC) in Riverdale Park on November 12.

There’s a lot missing in the new Cornerstone Plan

The new Cornerstone Plan is as notable for what it doesn’t mention (at least in much detail) as for what it does. The Baltimore and Potomac Tunnel, currently one of the main chokepoints on the Penn Line, appears just twice in the plan’s 68 pages—once to note that “based on the location selected” for the new B&P Tunnel, the West Baltimore MARC station “may need to be relocated.”

Continued Brunswick Line service to West Virginia, the subject of repeated controversy and intense negotiations over the past few years, isn’t mentioned at all, nor is the Penn Station Vision Plan currently under development in Baltimore. Pennsylvania Station is a key transit hub for the state, and it badly needs repairs and updates.

Map of rail lines from page 11 of the new MARC Cornerstone Plan.

Virginia, on the other hand, is going ahead with a 2014 long-term plan to reduce Virginia Railway Express (VRE) headways to as little as 15 minutes and is moving forward with plans to add a new span to the Long Bridge, potentially enabling MARC trains to one day expand into Northern Virginia. Nonetheless, the MARC Cornerstone Plan only mentions the Long Bridge twice, once to note that “implementation of run-through service would require a cost-sharing partnership with other rail constituents including VRE, Amtrak, CSX, and others.”

What does the new plan say?

The new Cornerstone Plan does say that the Brunswick Line requires roughly $720 million in improvements—mostly added third track segments—in order to have limited midday service. It also needs $620 million of further improvements to allow weekend service and increased frequency to Frederick.

Service improvements on the shorter Camden Line would be a bit cheaper: $360 million to add enough third track to allow limited weekend service, and another $300 million to allow full midday and weekend service.

When asked about the new plan, Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT) spokesperson Brittany Marshall said, “The MARC Cornerstone Plan focuses on MDOT MTA’s commitment to safety, efficiency, reliability and world class customer service. It outlines the vision for passenger rail transportation and illustrates critical path capital investments required from multiple stakeholders. A thorough planning and feasibility study would be required to determine the viability of such investments.”

Besides funding from the state, improvements to the Brunswick and Camden lines require cooperation from CSX, which owns them.

“It’s important to remember that any expansion of service on the Brunswick and Camden lines is contingent upon CSX as a partner,” Marshall added. “MARC Train operates the Brunswick and Camden lines on tracks owned by CSX. CSX is primarily a freight railroad, and we negotiate time slots for our trains to run. CSX is not providing additional time slots for passenger service. The B&P Tunnel and the Penn Station Vision Plan will be considered as MARC Train works toward its vision for passenger rail service.”

Maryland Delegate Marc Korman praised the Cornerstone Plan for acknowledging the importance of funding projects like a third track on the Brunswick Line, but also criticized what he sees as a much lower prioritization of commuter rail by Maryland compared to Virginia.

“I am glad they released the plan and that it has some proposals in it, including funding needs. I am not surprised it does not include the (Camden and Brunswick Line improvement timelines), because the current Administration has no plans to do those things,” Korman said. “Virginia has prioritized commuter rail and Maryland has not, it is as simple as that. Maryland’s goal for Long Bridge should be two-way commuter run through service.”

We’re going to keep writing about what the Cornerstone Plan does and keeping track of how it changes. Stay tuned for more about how it’ll affect Maryland and the region.