Ohio’s State Rail Plan should prioritize passenger rail
Tomorrow, September 18, the Ohio Rail Development Commission (ORDC) will vote on their latest State Rail Plan at a public board meeting—and you have the opportunity to provide public comment.
This Plan, in its current form, is disappointing. It barely mentions improvements for passenger rail, provides no clear path forward for any of the proposed projects under Federal consideration, and skips major cities, like Akron, altogether.
To add insult to injury, the Ohio General Assembly cut funding for ORDC significantly, leaving the state’s ability to build new corridors all but dead on arrival.
A buckeye-sore:
Current Amtrak service in Ohio, by any stretch of the imagination, is terrible.
Three routes pass through the state while leaving huge gaps between key communities. Columbus remains the largest U.S. city without any Amtrak service at all.
Plus, trains stop at major Ohio cities in the dead of night. No wonder the State Rail Plan shows Amtrak’s statewide economic impact as barely over 1% of that of freight rail—who wants to take the train at four in the morning?
Three active proposals in the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) Corridor ID program would only be the first step in transforming Ohio’s passenger rail network into a robust and thriving system that people will actually use:
- 3C+D (Cleveland-Columbus-Dayton-Cincinnati)
- Cleveland-Toledo-Detroit
- Midwest Connect (Chicago-Ft Wayne-Columbus-Pittsburgh)
However, these projects will never get off the ground if the Ohio Legislature continues to withhold resources.
The State Rail Plan needs to lead Ohio’s passenger rail network out of the dark ages.
What you can do:
Provide public comment at the ORDC public board meeting Thursday, September 18 at 11:00 AM ET via Zoom to let them know that passenger rail needs to be part of the package. If you live in the Columbus area and can attend in-person—even better! The meeting will be held at 1970 W Broad St, Columbus, OH 43223. Click here to register.
You can also tell your legislators and Governor DeWine to get funding for the passenger rail network Ohioans deserve back on track by filling out this form.
