Obama Administration’s vision for high-speed rail will transform travel in America, create manufacturing jobs, and spur economic development. In January 2010, the U.S. Department of Transportation awarded $8 billion to states across the country to develop America’s first nationwide high-speed intercity passenger rail service through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).

Chicago – Detroit – Pontiac corridor, which received approximately $244 million from the Recovery Act, connects Chicago and Detroit and several intermediate destinations including Kalamazoo and Ann Arbor, MI. The corridor serves communities in Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan and connects them to the Chicago Hub via six round trips per day.

The $161 million in FY 2010 awards will continue laying the groundwork for the long-term vision of the corridor, which includes: doubling the number of daily round trips between Detroit and Chicago; increasing speeds to 110 miles per hour in order to reduce trip times; and relieving railroad congestion by addressing a series of major chokepoints.

Summary of Corridor Investments

Kalamazoo – Detroit – Pontiac: through FY 2010 awards, a $150 million grant will allow the Michigan Department of Transportation to purchase and restore 135 miles of rail line between Kalamazoo and Dearborn. An additional $7.9 million FY 2009 grant will pay for new connecting track and crossovers, a new bridge, and a new rail traffic control system in western Detroit. 

These projects will signicantly improve efficiency and safety while reducing passenger travel times along the corridor.

These investments will build on prior Recovery Act awards that are renovating stations in Troy and Battle Creek and constructing a new station in Dearborn.

Chicago – Kalamazoo:  through FY 2010 awards, a $3.2 million grant will help the state complete planning and environmental studies for high-speed rail operations on the Chicago – Detroit – Pontiac corridor. These investments will build on prior Recovery Act awards that are helping to build a flyover, approach bridges, embankments, and retaining walls in Chicago. These projects will reduce congestion and allow trains to travel 40 percent faster south of Chicago while setting the stage for the future construction of three new tracks for trains traveling east of Lake Michigan.

Additional Recovery Act money is improving the most congested and delay-prone corridor in the entire country, a segment between Porter, IN and Chicago. The project will install high-speed crossovers and signal system improvements, make rail line additions at two new locations, and create new passing tracks. Passengers traveling from communities in Michigan and Indiana to Chicago will experience significant increases in service and reliability.

Source: http://www.fra.dot.gov/rpd/downloads/Detroit_Chicago_FINAL_1027.pdf

From a Federal Railroad Administration press release

Public Demand for High-Speed Rail Continues to Exceed Available Dollars in Latest Round of Awards

WASHINGTON – U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood today announced that 54 high-speed rail projects in 23 states will share in $2.4 billion to continue developing America’s first nationwide program of high-speed intercity passenger rail service

The Department’s Federal Railroad Administration received 132 applications from 32 states totaling $8.8 billion, more than three times the $2.4 billion available. During the first round of awards in the fall of 2009, applicants submitted more than $55 billion in project proposals for the initial $8 billion from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

“Demand for high-speed rail dollars is intense and it demonstrates just how important this historic initiative is,” said Secretary LaHood. “States understand that high-speed rail represents a unique opportunity to create jobs, revitalize our manufacturing base, spur economic development and provide people with an environmentally friendly transportation option.”

More than 30 rail manufacturers and suppliers, both domestic and foreign, have agreed to establish or expand their bases of operations in the United States if they are hired to build America’s next generation high-speed lines, a commitment the Obama Administration secured to help ensure new jobs are created here at home.

Some award examples include:

• California received more than $901 million, including $715 million for the construction of new high-speed rail lines in the Central Valley. The state has made significant investments in passenger rail that have led to remarkable ridership growth;
• Florida received $800 million for the Tampa to Orlando high-speed rail corridor. The state’s long-term vision is for a high-speed rail line that connects Tampa, Orlando, Miami and other communities;
• Iowa received $230 million to create a new intercity passenger rail service between Iowa City and Chicago through the Quad Cities. When completed, the service will form an integral part of the existing efforts to develop the Chicago Hub intercity rail system in the Midwest; and
• Michigan received $161 million for a high-speed rail corridor connecting Detroit and Chicago, the two largest cities in the Midwest. The long-term vision for this corridor includes doubling the number of daily round trips between Detroit and Chicago.

The money is being awarded for a range of activities, such as construction of track and stations, purchase of new passenger equipment, and planning studies to develop new high-speed rail service.

“In the 20th century, our vision led to the interstate highway system,” said FRA Administrator Joe Szabo. “In the 21st century, our vision will give us a world-class network of high-speed passenger rail corridors.”

In addition to the $8 billion down payment from the Recovery Act, additional funding for high-speed rail has come from several sources. These include $95 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s FY 2009 appropriations and remaining money from a related FY 2008 appropriations program, and from the Department’s FY 2010 appropriations, which included at least $2.125 billion for high-speed rail service development programs, $245 million for individual projects and $50 million for planning and multi-state proposal activities.

A complete project list can be viewed at http://www.fra.dot.gov/rpd/passenger/2243.shtml

Source: http://www.fra.dot.gov/Pages/press-releases/227.shtml

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From the Jackson Citizen-Patriot

Faster trains between Kalamazoo and Dearborn mean more jobs and a brighter future for Michigan.

That was the message U.S. Sen. Carl Levin and U.S. Rep. Mark Schauer delivered at the Jackson Amtrak Station on Thursday.

The Michigan Department of Transportation is getting $150 million in federal funds to purchase and upgrade 135 miles of track between Kalamazoo and Dearborn for high-speed rail.

Read more: http://www.mlive.com/news/jackson/index.ssf/2010/10/lawmakers_officials_laud_150_m.html

From the Owosso Argus-Press

The Steam Railroading Institute is currently looking for a new executive director to replace T.J. Gaffney.

“The recruitment process will begin immediately, and we hope to fill the position prior to (Gaffney’s) departure,” SRI President Richard Greter said.

Gaffney recently announced his departure from SRI, he has held his position since January 2007.

“I believe that this is a good juncture for me to complete my tenure and focus on my family,” Gaffney said. “I am proud of all that has been accomplished and I consider it a privilege to have served as executive director of SRI.”

“His decision to leave may have come as a surprise to some of our volunteers, but I think that a great many of them knew of some of the challenges he faced,” Greter said of Gaffney leaving SRI. “Nearly four years of 60 hour work weeks, most weekends at Owosso away from home, a one hour and 20 minute commute, and a disrupted family life were all contributing factors.”

“I have quite the commute, and it’s been hard on my family,” Gaffney said.

Read more: http://www.argus-press.com/news/community/owosso/article_4ee77846-e373-11df-bf41-001cc4c002e0.html