McGuireWoods advised CSX Transportation Inc., a leading supplier of rail-based freight transportation in North America, in a $525 million deal to transfer more than 495 miles of right-of-way to the Commonwealth of Virginia as part of a plan to expand passenger and commuter rail service. The first of three closings in the deal, which involved the sale of right-of-way between Washington, D.C. and Richmond, occurred on April 14, 2021.
Virginia, in cooperation with Amtrak and Virginia Railway Express, plans to increase commuter and intercity rail service significantly in the Interstate 95 corridor with a planned investment of $3.7 billion to acquire rights-of-way, construct a new bridge over the Potomac River and build new passenger rail facilities separated from CSX’s freight rail operations. The deal with CSX will preserve an existing freight corridor for use by CSX and lay the foundation for high-speed rail between Virginia and North Carolina.
Richmond partner Charles Menges led the McGuireWoods deal team, which included Norfolk partner Mark Williamson and Richmond counsel Christine Rogerson and associates Samuel Kennedy and Stephen O’Neal. All are members of the firm’s Real Estate & Land Use Department.
“We were proud to assist CSX in this historic transaction,” Menges said. “This deal will transform our transportation infrastructure, benefiting passenger rail service and freight rail customers, as well as reduce congestion and pollution.”
McGuireWoods’ real estate group represents investors, developers, financial institutions and Fortune 100 companies in matters throughout the United States and abroad. The firm earned Tier 1 national rankings for real estate law, land use and zoning law, and real estate litigation in the 2021 edition of U.S. News-Best Lawyers’ “Best Law Firms.”