Could train service expand in Ohio?

Gov. Mike DeWine has asked a state agency to weigh in on proposed expansion of passenger train service in Ohio, giving hope to train fans in the state. Amtrak got a big infusion of cash in last year's capital improvements bill backed by President Joe Biden. The passenger train agency has talked about a new route that would connect Cleveland with Columbus, Dayton and Cincinnati, an effort that apparently would require some support from Ohio. The agency also has promised to expand existing service on an east-west route connecting New York to Chicago that includes stops in Sandusky, Cleveland, Toledo and other cities in northern Ohio. DeWine has said little about those proposals until now. "The governor has asked the Ohio Rail Development Commission to engage with Amtrak to determine the feasibility and cost of the routes identified in the Amtrak 'Connects US' proposal. The feasibility determination is still in process," said Dan Tierney, who is DeWine's press secretary. The governor's statement moves the proposal a bit further down the track, said Stu Nicholson, executive director of the Ohio Passenger Rail Association. "I am absolutely encouraged by this," said Nicholson. Nicholson said he'll be "elated" if state officials actually follow through and take action, but said, "This is a step we've been urging him to take for months. I know we're not the only ones who have been contacting the governor's office and urging that he do this." The $63 billion included for Amtrak in the infrastructure bill means that the U.S. has gotten serious about expanding passenger rail and that Ohio has a real opportunity to take part, Nicholson said. Connecting cities Columbus and Dayton have been without passenger rail service since 1979. Cincinnati has Amtrak service six days a week, although there's plenty of room for improvement, Nicholson said. Three days a week, the train runs in one direction, and three days a week it goes the other way, he said. The Ohio Rail Development Commission's executive director, Matthew Dietrich, didn't take the Sandusky Register's questions but instead referred a reporter to spokeswoman Wende Jourdan, who said the agency has been meeting with Amtrak officials. "There's really not too much to say at this point," said Jourdan, who said she didn't know when the study requested by DeWine is likely to be completed. But Nicholson, who used to work for the Ohio Rail Development Commission, said corridor studies typically take anywhere from eight to 12 months, meaning that a report might become available sometime early next year. Jourdan and Nicholson both mentioned a May 13 announcement by the Federal Railroad Administration that it has launched a Corridor Identification and Development (ID) Program to develop an improved passenger rail system. "The Corridor ID Program will establish a pipeline of projects ready for funding, allowing them to be implemented faster and with greater coordination than ever before. The program will serve as a key vehicle for directing federal investments and technical assistance toward new or improved intercity passenger rail services across the nation," according to a news release issued by the agency. Nicholson said Federal Railroad Administration guidance, also released May 13, makes it clear that when states apply for matching grants, state matching money doesn't necessarily have to come from the state treasury. Metropolitan planning money and private money also can be used, Nicholson said. The big bucks provided to Amtrak have revived talk of the Cleveland to Columbus to Cincinnati rail line, which had been sought about 12 years ago by Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland, a Democrat. The proposal died when Strickland was replaced by a Republican, John Kasich, who wasn't interested. All of the additional funding for passenger trains has led to a discussion about other possible new routes. The city council in Toledo wants a train that will connect Columbus, Toledo and Detroit, Nicholson said. Another proposed route would connect Chicago, Columbus and Pittsburgh, he said. He cautioned that upgrading even the existing east-west route that serves Sandusky now may require infrastructure investments. For example, a bridge and a causeway across Sandusky Bay has two tracks, Nicholson said. The study may need to take a look at whether tracks need to be added, he said. Similarly, Toledo has an old iron bridge over the Maumee River, well over 100 years old, that has two tracks and may need to be improved, he said.