Title
Supporting the study of new passenger rail service between Saint Paul and Fargo/Moorhead and Saint Paul and Kansas City, Missouri.
Body
WHEREAS, the Saint Paul to Kansas City (TC to KC) rail corridor and the Saint Paul to Fargo/Moorhead rail corridor are priority corridors for intercity passenger rail in the Minnesota Department of Transportation’s Minnesota State Rail Plan; and
WHEREAS both corridors are recommended in the Federal Railroad Administration’s Amtrak Daily Long-Distance Service Study (2025) including an extension of the route to Texas; and
WHEREAS the Federal Railroad Administration will open a new grant application round for its Corridor Identification and Development (Corridor ID) Program in 2026 [“The Corridor ID program is a comprehensive intercity passenger rail planning and development program that will help guide intercity passenger rail development throughout the country and create a pipeline of intercity passenger rail projects ready for implementation”]; and
WHEREAS, these two proposed new corridors, if implemented, would increase activity at Saint Paul’s Union Depot and in downtown Saint Paul; and
WHEREAS, the Saint Paul to Fargo/Moorhead corridor has strong potential for ridership as it would provide a second daily train on a convenient daytime schedule to supplement Amtrak’s long-distance train the Empire Builder and connect cities in Minnesota to each other and the Twin Cities metropolitan area; and
WHEREAS, the Saint Paul to Kansas City corridor has strong ridership potential as it:
- Serves the major population centers of Des Moines, IA, (pop. 740,000), Kansas City region (pop. 2.2 million), and Twin Cities region (pop. 3.7 million).
- Connects Minnesota to Amtrak routes that serve Denver, San Francisco, Phoenix, Los Angeles and many stops in between.
WHEREAS, freight railroads will benefit from the capital investment required for new passenger service, enabling greater train speeds, reduced railroad congestion, and rail crossings that are safer for all users; and
WHEREAS, the state-supported Borealis between Saint Paul and Chicago has been extremely successful, with first year ridership exceeding projections by an average of 50 percent; and
WHEREAS, many states in the Midwest and around the country are investing in expanded passenger rail service for the economic and mobility benefits. Some of these states include but are not limited to: Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio, Virginia, California, Oregon, Maine, and North Carolina.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the Saint Paul City Council, that it hereby supports new passenger rail service between Saint Paul and Fargo/Moorhead and Saint Paul and Kansas City, Missouri and requests that the Minnesota Legislature direct MnDOT to submit a Corridor Identification Grant Application to the Federal Railroad Administration.