Thursday, January 28, 1999
Bullet train possibilities tantalize
4 1/2-hour ride to Chicago has business, fun potential
BY TANYA ALBERT
The Cincinnati Enquirer
A high-speed train linking Cincinnati, Indianapolis and Chicago could cut travel time and costs for companies such as Deloitte & Touche Consulting Group.
The company books 25 to 30 plane trips between Cincinnati and Chicago weekly, with a round-trip ticket going for about $773, said Deloitte & Touche travel consultant Andrea Pressler. Planes are about the only option between the two cities right now. The five-hour drive is too long and cuts into work time.
But on a 41/2-hour train ride, a businessman or businesswoman could get work done and be dropped off right in the heart of the city.
“It probably would end up being faster than driving from the airport and parking,” Ms. Pressler said.
INFOGRAPHIC
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Map of proposed Midwest high-speed rail system.
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That's just one advantage of a bullet train proponents say would ease increasing traffic congestion between the cities and give travelers, both for pleasure and business, an alternative to cars and planes.
U.S. Secretary of Transportation Rodney Slater is expected to announce designation of the Cincinnati-Indian-
apolis-Chicago corridor for high-speed trains today in Chicago.
Cincinnati city leaders say it would help the region stay economically competitive. Proponents say the announcement is a good first step, but it is just a preliminary stage in the quest for the $300 million line.
“The designation is important. It is Ohio's first success in high-speed transportation,” said Thomas O'Leary, Ohio Rail Development Commission executive director. “But expectations need to be guarded, because it's difficult to say when this service might become a reality.”
The designation makes the states eligible to compete for federal grant money, but local and state money would still need to be found.
“It still is a ways off for it to actually happen, but to get the designation is a big help,” said Tom Beck, rail planner for the Indiana Department of Transportation. “This is one step up the ladder in the right direction.”
He said opening the line in five, six or seven years would be ideal.
Freight trains run on exist ing lines between Cincinnati and Chicago. But tracks and crossings would need to be upgraded so trains could travel up to 120 mph. Trains are allowed to go no faster than 79 mph now.
The states also need to talk more in depth with railroads that own the tracks and with rail trade unions to figure out how best to create a system, Mr. O'Leary said.
“We will work jointly with Indiana,” he said.
The Cincinnati-Indianapolis-Chicago corridor is part of a Midwest Regional Rail Initiative plan developed by nine Midwest states interested in connecting their cities by high-speed trains. Amtrak and the Federal Railroad Administration also took part in the initiative, which uses Chicago as the hub.
The plan also calls for a link between Chicago and Cleveland, but it has not yet been designated as a corridor. The Cincinnati-Chicago route was designated first in part because of the potential ridership, said Randall Wade, chief of intercity planning for the Wisconsin Department of Transportation.
A study projects 812,000 riders on the corridor annually in 2010, he said.
“We feel this corridor has really strong potential to operate at a profit after the initial start-up,” Mr. Beck said.
Ohio will continue to work to get a high-speed rail line between Cleveland and Chicago designated, Mr. O'Leary said.
“We need to do more work with Norfolk-Southern and find out what passenger advocates have in mind in Cleveland,” he said.
And the Ohio Rail Development Commission continues to investigate high-speed train service among Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati. There is a March deadline to make requests that the government designate that as a corridor.
The Cincinnati-Indianapolis-Chicago line that is now eligible to apply for federal money would appeal to business and pleasure travelers, Mr. Wade said.
“It provides another kind of mobility,” he said. “There is a market out there for this kind of service.”
Cincinnati leaders see it as key to keeping the region a desirable place for businesses. They want to work to get the local and state money needed to get a system up and running.
“In order to move an economy, you need to move people,” said Cincinnati Mayor Roxanne Qualls, who plans to send letters to mayors in Chicago, Indianapolis and other cities to see what type of alliance they can form to make the system a reality. “It's vital to economic growth.”
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