Madison city leaders introduce proposal for study on potential Amtrak station locations
MADISON, Wis. — A group of city leaders introduced a proposal Tuesday night for a city-funded study that would highlight potential locations for an Amtrak station in Madison.
The proposal, which will receive a full council vote at a later Common Council meeting, would allocate $120,000 for the proposed study. The measure is sponsored by Alders Grant Foster, Keith Furman, Barbara Harrington-McKinney, Patrick Heck and Charles Myadze.
Expanding transit options throughout the city, including bringing passenger rail service back to Madison, has been a key issue throughout Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway’s first term.
@MadCityCouncil will consider an @Amtrak passenger rail station location study for @CityofMadison. The measure, Introduced last night, with a full council vote to be held later, will provide funds for the location study. https://t.co/udrvpqXRoY pic.twitter.com/E3pfo2uedO
— Mayor of Madison (@MayorOfMadison) May 11, 2022
“The recently passed federal Bi-partisan Infrastructure Law includes unprecedented funding for passenger rail expansion, over a 500% increase,” Rhodes-Conway said in a news release. “With this study, the City of Madison hopes to capitalize on this opportunity to partner with state and federal agencies, as well as Amtrak, to identify a locally preferred passenger rail station that could be used in a future extension of Amtrak’s highly successful Hiawatha service to Madison.”
According to a release from city leaders, the study would build on the findings of multiple passenger rail studies released last year, including the US DOT’s 2021 Midwest Regional Rail Plan that recommends Madison “be included on any mainline route alignment” of the Core Express corridor between Chicago and Minneapolis-St. Paul.
RELATED: Amtrak proposes expanding services to Madison
If approved, city leaders said the study would hopefully be completed by early 2023.
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