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The Iowa Department of Transportation is seeking public input for a study of a possible new passenger rail line that would connect the Omaha metropolitan area and Chicago.
The transportation department and the Federal Railroad Administration are jointly looking at five possible routes across the Hawkeye State.
One would touch the Quad Cities, Iowa City and Des Moines before ending up in the Omaha area. Exactly where the line would end has not been determined, and it might not stretch into Omaha proper.
"There is a potential issue in getting across the Missouri River," said Paul Mullen, executive director of the Metropolitan Area Planning Agency. "There is ... only one rail bridge that is active."
The other four potential routes being studied would go through cities such as Cedar Rapids, Ames, Waterloo and Fort Dodge, among others.
"There's a wide range. At the end of the study we will be able to know which is the most feasible route. As of now, we don't have the information to determine that," said Amanda Martin, the freight and passenger policy coordinator for the Iowa Department of Transportation.
The department is hosting a public, online open-house meeting beginning today. Visit Omaha.com for the link. People can file statements about the routes they would prefer, ask questions or raise concerns.
The route through Des Moines would be an extension of the already-planned Green Line from Chicago to Iowa City. The portion of the Green Line linking Chicago and Moline, Ill., will open over the next few years, Martin said.
There has been talk of extending the Green Line to Des Moines and Omaha since that line was proposed. However, the four other lines also must be looked at to satisfy the requirements of federal funding for both the study and the railway.
Further planning for the Moline to Iowa City portion is on hold until the study is complete. But the selection of another route would not necessarily be the death knell for the Quad Cities-to-Iowa City link, Martin said.
The number of possible routes across Iowa should be whittled down over the course of the 12- to 18-month study, she said, with a preferred route selected at the end.
One possibility would be along the route of Amtrak's current California Zephyr, which crosses into Iowa at Burlington and goes through Osceola, Creston and Glenwood before turning north into Omaha.
But the new line would be an inter-city line, not the longer-distance Zephyr from Chicago to the San Francisco Bay Area. Improvements to the new line would make it faster than the Zephyr; planners are looking for ways to accommodate speeds of up to 110 mph, whereas the Zephyr is now limited to 79 mph.
"It's just a totally different service," Martin said. "Right now, the way it exists does not have the same on-time performance that the inter-city typically does."
HDR Inc. is the DOT's consultant on the study, which is projected to cost $2 million, covered with a mix of state and federal funds. It is too early to tell the ultimate cost of the rail line, Martin said.
Some have questioned the wisdom and timing of the federal government spending on new passenger rail. One of them is U.S. Sen. Mike Johanns, R-Neb.
"With all the critical transportation needs, from roads to bridges to maintaining our current railway system, the senator cannot foresee this project being a priority, especially in light of the serious budget challenges facing our country," said Paul Donahue, Johanns' press secretary.
Iowa Sen. Tom Harkin, a Democrat, is more supportive. Harkin is an advocate for high-speed rail, though the new line would not quite compare with the 150 mph-plus rail service in Europe and Japan.
"I have long favored increased transportation options for Midwesterners — including high-speed rail," the senator said in a statement. "But one thing is clear: Developing more transportation opportunities is a good investment for our communities."
Contact the writer:
402-444-1310, andrew.nelson@owh.com
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