In This Issue

 

The construction cost of High-Speed Rail is estimated at $7.1 million per mile from St. Paul to Milwaukee compared to $12.2 million per mile to add a lane of highway in each direction between St. Paul and Milwaukee.

 More Fast Facts and FAQs

February 7, 2014

Greetings! Minnesota High-Speed Rail's February 2014 E-news update replaces our annual report. Please forward this newsletter to friends who may be interested in high-speed rail news.

 It's not here yet, but it's comin' round the bend. Amtrak's Empire Builder is expected to begin service to the historic Union Depot in St. Paul in the spring of 2014. The Ramsey County Regional Rail Authority recently approved a 20-year lease with Amtrak which will use a portion of the depot for passenger ticketing, baggage handling, VIP lounge, office and staff areas. It will pay the county approximately $144,000 a year in rent.

Read more about overcoming construction and scheduling challenges, how Minnesota High-Speed Rail fits in, and how Union Depot is becoming a transportation hub.  

Read more

 

In an effort to increase communication and smooth the planning process, a Technical Advisory Committee has been formed by the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) for the Minnesota High-Speed Rail project. The committee's purpose is to share information on project progress and local needs with key local government planning staff during the study, and to provide another channel of communication between MnDOT and local elected officials. The group will meet every 6-8 weeks, with the next meeting in late February or early March to review progress on train capacity modeling.

High-speed rail study
The environmental study on the upgrade of passenger rail service between the Twin Cities and Chicago has been expanded to include a study of alternatives west of St. Paul. The Minnesota High-Speed Rail Commission is advocating for service expansion from one daily roundtrip at a top speed of 79 miles per hour to six to eight daily roundtrips at 110 miles per hour.

As part of a Tier 1 Environmental Impact Study, MnDOT is conducting a feasibility study of three alternative alignments between Union Depot and Target Field station in Minneapolis. The study is a necessary component to meet Federal Railroad Administration requirements and qualify for federal funding. 

"Second train" study
With ridership steadily increasing on the Empire Builder line, Amtrak is studying the feasibility of adding a second daily round-trip passenger train between the Twin Cities and Chicago. Results had been expected in 2013, but Rail Traffic Controller (RTC) Railroad Operations Modeling, simulation software used to determine ways to add capacity to a railroad network, has taken longer than expected. The work has been complicated by increased freight traffic on the corridor due to oil production in North Dakota. In addition, the study is determining the Twin Cities terminus. Service could terminate at Union Depot, Target Field station, the Fridley Northstar Commuter Rail station, or St. Cloud. The modeling report is expected by the end of January 2014 with feasibility study results expected this spring. 

St. Charles Mayor Bill Spitzer was re-elected as Chair of the Minnesota High-Speed Rail Commission and Wabasha County Commissioner Rich Hall was re-elected as the Vice Chair. Ramsey County Commissioner Janice Rettman will be the Commission's member on the Minnesota Passenger Rail Forum and Lake City Councilmember Andru Peters will be the alternate. Jerry Miller, former Mayor of Winona and former chair of the Minnesota High-Speed Rail Commission, will serve as the commission's community liaison in 2014. 

Illinois: The final phase of Illinois' more than $1.6 billion venture into high-speed rail began in October south of Springfield on a line between Chicago and St. Louis, Missouri.

Learn more about the Minnesota High-Speed Rail Commission at our website, or Like us on Facebook.

Thank you for your interest in High-Speed Rail!