The journey to restoring passenger rail from Wilmington to Raleigh is still a long one, said Gene Merritt, a Wilmington developer who helped in the successful effort to extend Interstate 40 in the 1980s and '90s.

But he believes there is some light at the end of that long tunnel, and Merritt said Thursday that he and another Wilmington entrepreneur, Steve Unger, have embarked on a campaign to try to make sure that light is reached.

To that end, Merritt and Unger have formed an organization called Eastern Carolina Rail and seeking nonprofit status for it.

Unger, who pushed for the U.S. 17 Hampstead Bypass, is president, while Merritt, who spearheaded the push to extend of I-40 from Benson to Wilmington, is vice president. They have already met with N.C. Department of Transportation rail division officials and other stakeholders.

“It’s not going to be an overnight thing,” Merritt said. “It’s going to take some time, but it’s something we feel like would be fantastic, to have passenger rail service from here to Raleigh.”

Federal funding is earmarked for such a project through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act approved in 2021, which included $44 billion for the Federal Railroad Administration’s (FRA) discretionary grant program and $66 million for passenger and freight rail infrastructure.

But to Merritt and Unger, it’s important to make sure officials are focusing on getting the proposed Wilmington connection done, even if it takes 10 years or more.

“Eastern Carolina Rail will be undertaking a public petition drive and doing whatever is necessary to assist the N.C. Department of Transportation in making this project a reality through a public/private undertaking designed to create awareness and assist as a problem-solver at all levels,” according to an ECR statement by Unger and Merritt.

Unger said, “The idea is to gather support wherever possible.”

They said the work of the organization, for which they’ve applied for 501(c)3 status, will include continuing to meet with leaders in Wilmington and New Hanover County, as well as other communities involved, such as Burgaw, Wallace, Selma and Goldsboro, along with conducting community meetings.

The rail service would be a boon for more than just passengers, they said. The rail link, which they say already has “significant public support” with state and federal funding available, “will also create opportunities for the State Port in Wilmington and other commercial entities along the proposed route while serving numerous counties and nearby municipalities.”

The Wilmington City Council in May gave the green light to a resolution in support of the NCDOT’s application to have the proposed Wilmington to Raleigh route be included in the FRA’s Corridor Identification and Development Program.

Before that, the Wilmington Urban Area Metropolitan Planning Organization's board in March “unanimously supported a resolution of support for NC DOT's application and encouraged its members to also consider providing resolutions of support. The City of Wilmington is situated at the end of the corridor and, along with NCDOT, has planned for future passenger rail service for many years. Establishment and future implementation of intercity rail service in the Wilmington to Raleigh corridor would provide numerous benefits to the City and surrounding region, including safety, connectivity, economic advancement, and supporting overall regional growth. Selection of the corridor for the FRA’s Corridor ID Program would provide some of [the] resources necessary to realize these benefits,” according to the city’s resolution documents.

The cost of the project will no doubt be steep, having been estimated at up to more than $180 million in a 2005 feasibility study. If federal and state funds cover much of the cost, "the people that will benefit from it also need to put some money into it," Merritt said.

The last time passengers were transported by rail on the Wilmington to Raleigh route was around 1967, Unger said. “The time has come,” he said.