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RJ Corman seeks federal rail grant to upgrade Horry County line; county match discussed
Summary
RJ Corman representatives told the committee they will apply to a federal CRISI grant (NOFO released April 20) with a combined FY25–FY26 funding pool of about $2 billion and a June 22 deadline; proposed work includes tie servicing, switch installation and rail replacement within Horry County and a county match of roughly $1.4 million was noted.
RJ Corman representatives briefed the committee on a proposed federal grant application to fund upgrades on the Carolina line that runs through Horry County.
Adam Wells and Jackson Curran described the 103-mile line (Marion, Columbus and Horry counties) and said RJ Corman hopes to use the Federal Railroad Administration’s CRISI-like grant program to fund tie servicing, switch replacement and other track work. Jackson Curran said the FRA’s notice of funding opportunity was posted April 20 and that the two fiscal years were combined, creating a pool of about $2,000,000,000. “We have until June 22nd, 11:59PM,” Curran said, urging staff to set aside time for application preparation.
Wells and Curran said most of the proposed work would be concentrated in Horry County and listed candidate activities including tie servicing, tie disposal, switch installation and rail replacements. Curran said no scope changes had been made since the last briefing, and that engineering contingency and escalation percentages had been adjusted slightly.
Committee members asked about the county match and funding source. RJ Corman representatives indicated the county had allocated roughly $1.4 million for a match in prior budgeting and that grant-match funds were planned in future capital plans. One county official clarified that a $1.5 million match figure had been discussed; RJ Corman said the county submission was for approximately $1.401 million and that the resolution allowed up to $1.50 million.
Wells said the company had experienced a dip in carloads in 2025 but expected volumes to trend back up in 2026 and that the project would support freight modal shift by getting truck traffic off U.S. 501. Speakers framed the investment as both safety and capacity work across multiple crossings; the presentation noted crossing work within Horry County and referenced a multi-million-dollar investment figure discussed in the briefing.
Staff did not request final action from the committee at this meeting but asked for continued coordination to finalize the county’s grant submission and funding match.
