Ohio is preparing for a potential expansion of Amtrak passenger rail service through four major corridors, the Federal Railroad Administration announced Tuesday.
The routes selected for the development plan are:
- Cincinnati-Dayton-Columbus-Cleveland
- cleveland-toledo-detroit
- Chicago-Fort Wayne-Columbus-Pittsburgh (with connector service via Lima, Kenton, Marysville, Newark, Cochocton, Newcomerstown, Woolixville, and Steubenville).
- Increase frequency on Amtrak’s current routes from New York, Washington, DC, and Chicago to Cincinnati.
The Federal Railroad Administration will provide $500,000 in funding to the plan for each of the four corridors.
Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) praised the announcement as a great step toward expanding Amtrak in Ohio.
This investment was made possible through the bipartisan infrastructure law that Brown helped write and pass.
“Amtrak’s great service shouldn’t just be the privilege of people along the coast. ,” Brown said in a written statement. We are fighting to ensure that Ohio receives these critical infrastructure projects. ”
But don’t pack your bags just yet. This announcement represents the planning stage only.
Ohio could use federal planning funds to figure out what it needs to do to make the corridor a reality. This includes everything from state funding to operating costs to truck improvements.
