CLEVELAND, Ohio – The state of Ohio is “strongly considering” applying for federal dollars that could lead to expanded passenger rail service throughout the state, including establishment of a new route connecting Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton and Cincinnati.
Meanwhile, officials in Northeast Ohio are definitely planning to pursue funding that could establish Cleveland as an Amtrak mini-hub, with more frequent service to Chicago, New York City, Washington, D.C. and other cities.
The source of the funding for both potential expansions is a new federal inititiave, dubbed the Corridor Identification and Development Program, part of $66 billion in additional money for rail service included in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, passed by Congress in late 2021.
The Federal Railroad Administration late last month announced the details of the program, which includes a March 20 deadline to apply.
Amtrak has targeted Ohio for expansion, arguing that the state is one of the most underserved by passenger rail.
But up until recently, Gov. Mike DeWine has been lukewarm in his support for expanded rail service in Ohio, questioning the cost and potential ridership of any new service along what’s referred to as the 3C+D corridor, linking Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton and Cincinnati.
Dan Tierney, the governor’s spokesman, said Friday that funding from the new federal program would help Ohio determine answers to those questions, even before a firm state financial commitment is required. Indeed, the first two phases of the new Corridor ID program include funding for studying any new and existing routes.
“It will help us gather more information to make an informed decision,” said Tierney. “We’re strongly considering it.”
Meanwhile, officials at the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency, a Cleveland-based government organization that oversees transportation planning for the region, are in the early stages of preparing an application.
If successful, Grace Gallucci, executive director of NOACA, envisions radically expanded passenger rail service to and from Cleveland, including trains that stop in Northern Ohio during daylight hours.
She also envisions new shorter routes that start and end in Cleveland, traveling to Detroit, Buffalo, Pittsburgh and elsewhere.
“We have really good ridership for service that only comes in the middle of the night,” said Gallucci. “If we had our own originations and destinations, and frequencies that included daytime service – our ridership would absolutely increase exponentially.”
A hypothetical Amtrak schedule released by the rail service in early 2021 included as many as 22 trains passing through Cleveland at all hours of the day and night.
Currently, there are two Amtrak routes that stop in Cleveland – the Lake Shore Limited, which connects New York City and Boston to Chicago, and the Capitol Limited, which connects Washington, D.C. to Chicago. Both eastbound and westbound trains on those routes stop in Cleveland in the dark, early-morning hours.
A third route, the Cardinal, travels through southern Ohio, linking Chicago and New York via Cincinnati.
Columbus, meanwhile, is one of the largest cities in the United States without any passenger rail service.
In early 2021, shortly after the election of President Joe Biden, Amtrak unveiled a dramatic expansion plan, dubbed Amtrak Connects US, which includes dozens of proposed new and expanded routes throughout the United States, including several in Ohio.
Later that same year, in a conference call with reporters, Amtrak leaders said they were committed to expanding in Ohio. “Ohio is at the center of the country, it’s at the center of the great history of railroading in the United States,” said Amtrak CEO Bill Flynn. “There’s a real opportunity here. And it’s our goal to get this done.”
But expansion in Ohio has always been contingent on state interest.
Federal rules do allow other government organizations to apply for expansion funding, including NOACA and its Columbus equivalent, the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission. Even so, regional transportation leaders say state support is crucial.
“We are hopeful the state will move forward with the necessary next steps for the Cincinnati-Dayton-Columbus-Cleveland Corridor (3C+D) route,” said William Murdock, executive director of MORPC in Columbus. “MORPC and its partners throughout Central Ohio have made restoring passenger rail service to the Columbus region and rural and Appalachia Ohio a high priority. Through our efforts, we believe Ohio has the best business case for new passenger rail service in the country due to the potential ridership and business opportunities.”
It’s unclear if MORPC will apply for funding if the state does not.
Columbus almost had rail service more than a decade ago, when the state won federal funding for a Cleveland-Columbus-Cincinnati route. But DeWine’s predecessor, former Gov. John Kasich, famously returned $400 million in federal money in 2010 because he was opposed to state support for passenger rail service.
Since then, however, Amtrak and the Federal Railroad Administration have revised the rules of its programs, requiring less buy-in from the states.
The new Corridor ID program, for example, includes $500,000 in start-up study money in the first phase. States (or other transportation organizations) would contribute 10% of funding in the second phase, and 20% in the third.
Tierney, the governor’s spokesman, said it made sense to study the issue further. “It will help us gather further information for the governor and lawmakers,” he said.
Last month, in a conversation with reporters, DeWine said he supports increased passenger rail service in theory.
“In a perfect world, people would love to have a passenger rail in the state of Ohio,” he said. “I think the question is, what is the cost going to be? And that’s something that we’re working on and trying to, frankly, to understand better from the federal government, what that cost is going to be.”
Other important considerations, he said, are train speed and projected ridership. “Fran and I have done a lot of traveling on Amtrak over the years,” said DeWine, referring to his wife. “So we like trains. But the question is, you know, can we afford it? And is it going to work?”
Cleveland.com/The Plain Dealer reporter Jeremy Pelzer contributed to this story.
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