Barnes: Atlanta-Macon rail service no longer state's top priority

ATLANTA - A passenger rail line between Atlanta and Macon no longer is the state&#39;s first choice for commuter railroad, putting the projected July 2005 start date for the rail in jeopardy. <br> <br> Gov. Roy Barnes said Norfolk Southern Corp., which owns two rail lines between the cities, is asking too steep a price for the rights to one of the lines. <br> <br> ``What (Norfolk Southern) has been wanting is too high,&#39;&#39; Barnes said Thursday at a conference sponsored by the Georgia Press Association. <br> <br> ``I&#39;m not telling you it&#39;s not going to happen, but it&#39;s going to be a good deal when it does happen.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Barnes declined to reveal the asking price, and said negotiations are ongoing. <br> <br> State Sen. Robert Brown, D-Macon, called the decision ``a devastating blow.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> The state&#39;s first commuter-rail line now likely will be in the northern Atlanta suburbs, Lt. Gov. Mark Taylor said. <br> <br> ``DOT has changed their priorities,&#39;&#39; Taylor said. ``I had hoped (the first rail line) would have been the Macon line, but it looks like that won&#39;t be the case.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Arthur Vaughn, executive director of the Georgia Rail Passenger Authority, declined to comment. Calls to Norfolk Southern seeking comment were not returned. <br> <br> One lawmaker said a commuter-rail line in the northern Atlanta suburbs probably would be more expensive to create than an Atlanta-Macon line. <br> <br> ``The right of way for a rail line in the northern arc would be on some of the most expensive real estate in the country,&#39;&#39; said Robert Reichert, D-Macon. <br> <br> Barnes did not include $12 million in funding recommended by officials for the Atlanta-Macon rail line in his budget for next year. If the $12 million had been approved, it would have triggered a federal match of $68 million for the Atlanta-Macon connector.