(The Center Square) – Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers, the state’s Department of Transportation and Amtrak have applied for a federal grant to expand the Amtrak Hiawatha train line into Dane, Jefferson and Waukesha counties.
The announcement did not include a cost to state taxpayers or the amount requested but did acknowledge it includes capital costs “to improve track capacity and speeds for passenger service, enhance safety, and increase existing service reliability.”
The plan involves using existing rail lines and building infrastructure to expand the two daily Hiawatha Chicago to Milwaukee trains to Madison, Watertown and Pewaukee.
Madison last had passenger rail service in 1971. Madison completed a Passenger Rail Station Study last year that looked at eight potential sites for a train station.
State leaders have long debated funding a passenger line between Madison and Milwaukee with former Gov. Jim Doyle applying for grants and agreeing to a deal to build two trains for a high speed line.
Gov. Scott Walker then turned down the $810 million in federal stimulus funds for the project, citing the long-term maintenance costs to maintaining the line, which could be used instead on road repair. He asked U.S. Dept. of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood to spend the money on roads and bridges instead.
Waiker maintained a website, notrains.com, during his campaign for governor. The money was then granted to other states for train projects.
The company that built the trains, Talgo, reached a $50 million settlement with the state over the trains, which ultimately went to Nigeria.
“My administration has been working hard to fix the darn roads, make sure Wisconsinites can get from Point A to Point B safely, and expand reliable transportation alternatives to make it even easier to get to and from work, school, home, and everywhere in between,” Evers said in a statement. “After years of neglect and disinvestment, Wisconsin’s roads, bridges, and infrastructure had fallen into disrepair, and we’ve spent seven years working to reverse that trend.
“The opportunity to expand passenger rail has haunted Wisconsin for a generation because of a short-sighted political stunt—that decision cost our state dearly, and we want to right that wrong.”
Evers and Amtrak cited numbers from the Borealis train service, which saw more than 416,000 passengers between its opening in May 2024 and this May.
Originally published on thecentersquare.com, part of the BLOX Digital Content Exchange.
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