Join the discussion on the following article:
Minnesota high speed rail begins environmental study work
Let’s do the easy part first, expand the Northstar to St. Cloud.
This has to be the strangest high speed rail project anywhere. Zip Rail is primarily interested in a 75 mile point-to-point connection from the big airport in the Twin Cities to downtown Rochester (read Mayo Clinic). Meanwhile there are fewer and fewer flights to Rochester’s airport. I doubt there would be more than one intermediate stop somewhere in Eagan or Apple Valley. I can’t imagine that generating much local ridership, however. It seems that this would be for foreign visitors including patients and families and medical professionals to Mayo Clinic and for families to make side trips to Mall of America.
The only reason to build out this link would be as part of a Twin Cities to Chicago dedicated high speed corridor, and this would place Rochester on the route instead of bypassing Rochester (again) for travel between Chicago and the Twin Cities. I find it disingenuous to claim no rail connection between the Twin Cities and Chicago when Rochester was on the first all rail route between the two and the only rails missing are at a crossing at grade near Owatonna. If there were any traffic, there would be freight trains. I also find it ironic that the regional rail authority was formed to keep DM&E coal trains out of Rochester, advocating for an expensive bypass around the city and now wants to promote this line.
Bill, after that do the second easiest thing. Extend Northstar service the other direction to St. Paul Union Station after they built the connection to allow some BNSF freight to bypass on CP. Okay, two things that would be easy to do along with approving CP’s yard reconfiguration in St. Paul. All the above would improve rail through put as well as improve existing asset/rail utilization that would free up capacity for passenger/commuter service expansion & better service. Then the fourth next thing before Rochester. Add HigherSR to Duluth!!
.
Have to agree with Kevin, the irony of ziprail is all about what Mayo clinic wants and didn’t want in the past not mention the reality that supposedly private air travel doesn’t want to serve Rochester.
This could also be about positioning Rochester to be on an eventual high speed line to Chicago, rather than being bypassed.
Ironic since Rochester killed the DME expansion which might have provided part or a route. Let the cake eaters drive their cars…
The problem with Rochester to Chicago is? Its going the wrong way. The faster, straighter, existing route would be MSP to Eau Claire to Madison to Ohare!
The most environmental-friendly option for such service: Utilize the now-CPR route west from Rochester to Dodge Center, then rebuild on the old CGW right-of-way Dodge Center to Randolph, then over the now-UP into the Twin Cities. But yes, no matter what routing is taken, one has to wonder about the ridership and viability of such a limited corridor …
Extension of North Star rail to St. Cloud, MN would certainly be foolish as the ridership is down by 8% and the operation has never shown a profit and never will…just another burden for the Minnesota taxpayers. Same thing for the ZipRail…another want rather than need fostered by the Mayo Clinic and even though private interests have indicated that there are private investors interested, it all comes down to Minnesota taxpayers having to bale out another miscue by people only interested in their own legacy.