Northern Lines Railway Wins $1.3M Track Grant

The federal CRISI funding will support rehabilitation of 25 miles of track in the St. Cloud region of Minnesota.

Updated on Nov. 2, 2026 in Transportation

Photograph of a straight steel rail on fresh wooden crossties crossing a flat snowy prairie under low winter sun, with bare trees at the horizon. — Northern Lines Railway won a $1.3 million federal CRISI grant to rehabilitate 25 miles of track in the St. Cloud region of Minnesota. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

Northern Lines Railway, an Anacostia Rail Holdings Company, was awarded $1.3 million in CRISI funding. The grant will support the Minnesota Track Rehabilitation & Reliability Project in the St. Cloud region.

Why it matters

The project targets aging short-line infrastructure, with upgrades expected to enhance performance and safety while reducing derailment risk. The railroad is contributing a 35% non-federal cost share to the work.

The $1.3 million CRISI award funds rehabilitation of 25 miles of track, with Northern Lines Railway contributing a 35% non-federal cost share. The total project cost and completion schedule were not disclosed.

The players

Northern Lines Railway

Northern Lines Railway is a short-line freight railroad operating in Minnesota and a subsidiary of Anacostia Rail Holdings.

Anacostia Rail Holdings

Anacostia Rail Holdings is a Washington-area holding company that owns and operates a portfolio of short-line and regional railroads across the United States.

The details

Crews will replace ties throughout the project and correct track surface and alignment defects along the corridor. The work is part of the Minnesota Track Rehabilitation & Reliability Project in the St. Cloud region.

• The CRISI grant award was announced on November 2, 2026.

Market Landscape

The award falls under the federal CRISI program, which has repeatedly directed grants toward short-line railroads to address deferred track maintenance. Short-line operators such as Northern Lines Railway increasingly rely on these matching-fund arrangements to upgrade lines that larger carriers have largely divested.

Residents near the St. Cloud rail corridor may notice crews replacing ties and correcting track alignment during the project. Freight shippers served by Northern Lines Railway should see a more reliable line once the rehabilitation is complete.

The takeaway

Federal grants paired with railroad cost-sharing are one way deferred maintenance on short-line track gets addressed. For Minnesota shippers, that means fewer speed restrictions and a lower risk of service disruption on rehabilitated lines.