The Minnesota Intercity Passenger Rail Plan - Getting Back on Track?

Streets.MN - May 6, 2020

Public transportation policy and funding in Minnesota over the past several years – if not decades – has focused on roads, bridges and airports.  As Minnesota’s population changes, these modes alone cannot satisfy all of our transportation needs.  The time has come for investment in a truly multi-modal transportation system.   Many Midwestern states have invested in intercity passenger rail and have seen tremendous returns in economic development, mobility, and environmental benefits.  This article explains why Minnesota should invest in more passenger rail as defined by MnDOT.

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Action Alert: All Aboard Minnesota hosts Rally for Passenger Rail on March 11

Great River Rail - February 27, 2020

Passenger rail advocacy group All Aboard Minnesota is once again hosting a rally for passenger rail at the Minnesota State Capitol building. The rally takes place on Wednesday, March 11 beginning at 9:00 a.m. and will feature speakers including state representatives and members of the Great River Rail Commission. This is a great opportunity to get your voice heard by lawmakers on the TCMC Second Train project and passenger rail initiatives.

The program will feature a time for questions as well as presentations on the economic and mobility benefits of passenger rail, and assistance in reaching out to legislators. All Aboard Minnesota is asking attendees to RSVP and to set up meetings with their representatives while at the capitol. The focus of the rally is to help secure funding for passenger rail projects in the Governor's bonding bill including the next phase of the TCMC Second Train project.

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Intercity Rail Would Bridge Minnesota's So-called" Rural-Urban Divide"

Streets.MN - February 24, 2020

A few months ago, I was privileged to be a guest lecturer for a colleague’s environmental sociology course at the UW-La Crosse. For those unfamiliar, La Crosse, Wisconsin is one of the larger small cities in the region. It’s a city with a metro area of about 130,000 people located in a magnificent spot on the Mississippi River, just on the north end of the Driftless Region, which is one of my favorite parts of the country. The city has a long and interesting history, an historic downtown, and an industrial legacy that makes it an interesting place to visit.

Best of all for this story, it’s one of the few cities anywhere on earth that is conveniently linked to Saint Paul by passenger rail. Each day, once in each direction, one of the few remaining Amtrak long-distance trains stops there on its way to Milwaukee and Chicago. The trip is a beautiful journey through the Mississippi River valley and, at the behest of my La Crosse friend, my wife and I went there and back on Amtrak, a distance of about 140 miles.

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