PR -- Passengers flock to reopened Virginia-Truckee Railroad

August 4, 2009 (Carson City, Nev.) – Public support for the reconstructed Virginia & Truckee Railroad (www.VTRailway.com) route from Carson City to Virginia City has met with immediate success and overwhelming popularity as tickets for the first train, Saturday, Aug. 15 sold out in just five days. The 140-passenger train will offer rides every Saturday through October.

Nearly 17 years in the making, the V&T Railroad is once again generating revenue for the region, originally with the silver from the Comstock Lode, and 150 years later with local passengers and visitors.

Seats are available Sunday, August 16 and every consecutive Saturday through Oct. 31. Trains leave Carson City from Eastgate Siding on Flint Drive at 10 a.m., arriving in Virginia City at 11:30 a.m. The train departs the F Street station in Virginia City at 3:00 p.m., returning to Carson City at 4:00 p.m. Roundtrip tickets are $48 per adult, $36 for children 12 and under and $40 for seniors 65 and older. One way tickets will be available for $29 adults, $23 for children and $25 for seniors. To reserve tickets, call 800-NEVADA-1 or visit www.VisitCarsonCity.com and click “buy tickets.”

The 60-90-minute train rides will include scenic vistas of the “old west” countryside, views of the Carson River, two tunnels and occasional sightings of wild stallions. Commemorative plaques with slices of historic track will be available to riders for $20 during the opening weekend with proceeds benefitting the Nevada Commission for the Reconstruction of the V&T Railway.

The V&T Railway, the richest short-line in American history, originally operated during the raucous silver strike era of the infamous Comstock Lode from 1869 to 1938. When completed in 2011, the reconstructed track will trace all 16.7 miles of the 19th century route between Carson City and Virginia City and is expected to serve as a major tourism attraction to the area. The Carson City Convention & Visitors Bureau and Carson City have pledged $21 million and Storey County has contributed $2 million to the $54.9 million project.

The Gray family began to reconstruct the tracks between Virginia City and Gold Hill in 1972. Since then, they have run trains daily between the two cities, keeping the V&T alive. Their involvement through the years has helped make the reconstruction project between Virginia City and Carson City possible, http://VirginiaTruckee.com/.