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News
Iowa
Receives
Two High-Speed Passenger Rail Grants
Posted 29 January
2010
Iowa has been
selected to receive two high-speed passenger rail grants worth
approximately $18 million. These funds are part of the $8 billion
provided for passenger rail grants in the American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act of 2009.
Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT) Director Nancy Richardson said,
“This is great news for Iowa. Furthering plans of expanded passenger
rail service in Iowa will eventually connect more businesses, create
jobs and strengthen our economy in the long term. It will also provide
another transportation alternative for those who cannot or choose not
to drive. We’ve worked hard to bring expanded passenger rail service to
Iowa. This round of funding is just the first step in our efforts to
secure the funding Iowa needs to achieve high-speed rail connectivity
in the Midwest. We will continue to compete for future funds to make
sure Iowa receives additional rail funding in upcoming rounds.”
Michael Franke, assistant vice president of Amtrak policy and
development, said, “Amtrak is pleased to congratulate Iowa in winning
grants through a highly competitive process. As a valued partner of
Amtrak, we look forward to continuing the study of the route westward
from Iowa City to Omaha with the Iowa DOT, while making improvements to
our current Amtrak California Zephyr route across southern Iowa.”
Iowa will receive the following federal grants in this first round of
funding for high-speed rail:
- $1 million for a
planning study for service between Omaha and Chicago. This grant will
better prepare Iowa to secure future federal funding for passenger rail
service.
- Approximately
$17 million to improve infrastructure on the BNSF line that provides
current Amtrak service across southern Iowa, thus improving Amtrak’s
on-time performance on that line.
Competition for these
federal funds was extensive. The Federal Railroad Administration
received 278 pre-applications requesting more than $102 billion for
high speed rail from 40 states and the District of Columbia. Today, the
Obama administration distributed $8 billion for work on 13 rail
corridors.
The Federal Railroad Administration is anticipating that additional
federal funds will be made available for high-speed rail capital
projects in FFY2011. There remains $2.5 billion available for FFY2010.
This will provide Iowa and the other members of the eight-state Midwest
regional rail group with additional opportunities to compete for
funding.
“While we are disappointed by the fact that the applications to fund
the Chicago to Iowa City and Chicago to Dubuque projects were not
selected, the planning and environmental work done to prepare these
applications better positions Iowa to compete for these future rounds
of funding,” said Stuart Anderson, director of the Iowa DOT’s Planning,
Programming and Modal Division.
In reaction to the announcement, Richardson also said how she
appreciated the enthusiasm of Iowans to expand passenger rail service
in the state, and she wants to continue to build upon that support to
keep Iowa moving forward with its plans. She also congratulated the
other states within the Midwest region who were successful in their
applications for funding, noting that enhanced passenger rail service
in other Midwest states will benefit the entire region. |
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