Lawmakers want abandoned NC rail line restored | News

WILMINGTON, NC (AP) - State lawmakers are asking the North Carolina Department of Transportation to look for money to restore an abandoned rail line in the southeastern part of the state.
    
State Reps. Susi Hamilton and Phil Shepard are proposing a bill asking for $65 million a year for two years.  The StarNews of Wilmington reports the money is needed to restore an abandoned line between Castle Hayne and Wallace.
    
Lawmakers say that without the line, military bases in North Carolina are moving their equipment through the ports in Norfolk, Va., and Charleston, S.C., instead of through Wilmington.
    
Completing the connection would reduce the rail deployment route between Camp Lejeune and Wilmington by about 100 miles and cut deployment times by about four hours.
    
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