DULUTH, Minn. — There’s news that the Northern Lights Express passenger rail project between Duluth-Superior and Minneapolis is receiving federal funding for further planning.
The Northern Light Express Route is one of 47 projects to receive up to $500,000 each. The Minnesota Department of Transportation will use the funds to update work completed in 2017.
The funding is part of 80% of the federal funding needed for the $1 billion project. The Minnesota Legislature approved $195 million to pay 20% of the state’s total costs.
The next step in the process is obtaining federal funding, and Northern Lights Express is uniquely positioned among the 47 projects named today.
Ken Buehler of the NLX Project’s Collaborative Power Alliance said: “This bill includes $16 billion for paired cities like Duluth-Superior and Minneapolis. Forty-seven of these paired cities were just approved under this corridor identification program, and Northern Rights Express is one of them, and by the way, only one of those 47 cities has one shovel-ready project, and only one has 100% state-federal alignment. Back Pocket. You. Talking about a great day.
Further funding announcements are expected to be made shortly after the new year.
