NC By Train

[1] Partly due to Hunt's efforts, Amtrak introduced the Carolinian on October 28, 1984, as a Charlotte-New York service, supported with a yearly $436,000 state subsidy.

Previously, the southbound Carolinian had to make a time-consuming 10-mile (16 km) deadhead trip to the nearest wye in Pineville, North Carolina.

[11] Unlike many states that subsidize Amtrak routes within their borders, North Carolina handles much of the marketing and operations for its state-subsidized services itself.

It serves Charlotte, Kannapolis, Salisbury, High Point, Greensboro, Burlington, Durham, Cary, Raleigh, Selma, Wilson and Rocky Mount before continuing to the Northeast Corridor via Richmond.

Based on projected costs, revenue, and ridership, the best option was determined to be a route between Salisbury and Asheville along 139 miles (224 km) of Norfolk Southern's S-Line.

The report estimated that the station, track, signal, and bridge projects required to start the route would cost $134.7 million (2002 US dollars).

In the appendix, Norfolk Southern noted that they cannot validate the various conclusion in the report, but does support the expansion of passenger rail and looks forward in those discussions.

Improvements include constructing/rehabilitating a partially abandoned alignment (the Norlina Subdivision) between Raleigh and Petersburg, that is more direct than the existing routing through Rocky Mount, potentially shaving more than an hour off the end-to-end travel time.

[18] The proposed corridor would provide a new service connecting Fayetteville with Raleigh, with intermediate stops at Lillington and Fuquay-Varina, using an existing alignment.

[18] In May 2001, NCDOT's Southeastern North Carolina Passenger Rail Feasibility Study showed strong interest in trains from Raleigh to Wilmington.

[18] The proposed corridor would connect Winston-Salem with Raleigh, with intermediate stops at Greensboro, Burlington, Durham, and Cary, complementing the existing state-supported Piedmont and Carolinian services.

[31] The proposed route between Raleigh and Greenville would travel along the Carolina Coastal Railway tracks, connecting with the Palmetto and Silver Service at Wilson station.

[31] In July 2022, planners from NCDOT and Pitt County announced they would hire a contractor to conduct a feasibility study of the route after receiving a $250,000 federal grant.

Connelly, East Carolina University Chancellor Philip Rogers, State Representative Brian Farkas, and the head of the Pitt-Greenville Convention & Visitors Authority.

[32] In March 2023, NCDOT submitted the route to the Federal Railroad Administration's Corridor Identification and Development Program; but was not selected when the results were released in December of that same year.

[31] The proposed route between Raleigh and Morehead City, via Selma Union Depot, would travel along the existing North Carolina Railroad track, with intermediate stops in Goldsboro, Kinston, and New Bern.

[31] In March 2023, NCDOT submitted the route to the Federal Railroad Administration's Corridor Identification and Development Program; but was not selected when the results were released in December of that same year.

[33][18] The proposed route between Raleigh and Hamlet, would complement the existing Silver Star, with intermediate stops in Cary, Sanford, and Southern Pines.

March 2023, NCDOT submitted the route to the Federal Railroad Administration's Corridor Identification and Development Program; but was not selected when the results were released in December of that same year.