The changing function of American cities, changes in our environment and advances in technology present a constant challenge to local decision makers to plan for the most appropriate means of meeting future mobility needs. This requires a cost conscious approach, which would offer attractive service, an efficient use of land, labor and capital, less pollution and less oil dependence. Under certain conditions rail systems may be cost effective and can offer many of these advantages, and provide a high quality of service.

Helping to define such conditions is the purpose of this research effort. It offers an extensive data base and a systematic methodology to test the suitability of proposed rail facilities, aid in the evaluation of alternatives, and promote greater efficiency of existing operations. It is in this spirit, to advance the state-of-the-art in evaluating rail systems, that the Urban Mass Transportation Administration (UMTA) sponsored this research.

The findings of the report do not represent the views or the policy of the U.S. Department of Transportation. The study’s assessment of particular urban corridors is heavily conditioned by the assumptions used; it should be viewed as illustrative of the methodology and not as a justification for or against local decisions, which can only rest on site-specific studies.

After “Urban Rail” was published, rail transit systems were built or expanded in more than a dozen cities, including Denver, Los Angeles, Seattle, and Washington, D.C. The L.A. and D.C. rail build-outs were particularly in line with RPA’s recommendations.