Riding the rail

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This past Sunday I had the opportunity with a number of others to ride with Gov. Chet Culver on the “Iowa Unlimited” train.

The trip started out in Iowa City and had “whistle stops” in West Liberty, Durant and Walcott, before arriving in the Quad Cities and finally Moline, Ill. The trip focused public attention and awareness on the value of passenger rail and offered a glimpse of what could happen in Iowa in the next couple of years.

The Iowa Interstate Railroad provided two vintage passenger coaches that operated on their rails, formerly the Rock Island Line. Iowa Interstate Railroad is a freight line and an outstanding Iowa corporate citizen. Last session, the Legislature invested $3 million in the I-JOBS Initiative to help restore passenger rail in our state. Additionally, the federal economic recovery act will invest billions of dollars nationally in passenger rail.

I’ve been a commissioner for MIPRC (Midwest Interstate Passenger Rail Commission) for the past three years, and our focus has been bringing passenger rail to the Midwestern states. The ultimate goal is to be able to travel between Chicago, Minneapolis, St. Louis, Milwaukee, Des Moines and other centrally located cities by passenger rail.

Iowans have shown a great interest in bringing back the passenger train. The benefits initially would be a route from Iowa City to the Quad Cities and on to Chicago. A Chicago to Dubuque route is also in the planning stage for passenger rail. We have also asked Amtrak for a feasibility study to take the line from Iowa City to Des Moines and ultimately on to Omaha and the West.

This is an exciting time for passenger rail and the citizens of Iowa who would like the possibility of “riding the rail.” My background with trains goes back 41 years, when I worked for three summers for the railroad. We would repair track, build track and inspect the track. We also had numerous chances of riding the train. During the week of work the workers lived and ate out of the rail cars. It was an exciting time and memories I cherish. I approach passenger rail service as a sort of romance for the rails as well as an efficient means for people to travel and freight to be hauled.