Passenger rail effort continues to gain support

The question of support continues for Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority (BSPRA) as the consortium of 12 counties pursue restoring passenger rail service across the “Southern Montana Route.” BSPRA convened for their April board meeting to deliberate several items of business which included a discussion amongst board members and rail enthusiasts who were deterred with a recently-released Amtrak study plan. Along with county representatives for the Rail Authority and public, representatives from the offices of Sen. Steve Daines and Sen. John Tester were in attendance.

Jim Matthews, president and CEO of the Rail Passengers Association, joined the board meeting to help settle unrest, as he says Montanans shouldn’t feel discouraged when they see that the southern route has not been included on a map of future Amtrak upgrades. Matthews urged the Rail Authority to continue their work in bringing passenger rail service to rural parts of the state, as their efforts have not gone unnoticed. According to Matthews, the conversation of rail is becoming a bigger topic in D.C. than it has been in earlier years. “When we have the right kinds of conversations, rail is genuinely a bipartisan concern,” Matthews said to the board members over a virtual meeting held last week.

Strong support has been given from both Daines and Tester, Matthews says, both have been strong champions for the work being done. Bipartisanship is possible in D.C. because of BSPRA, Matthews said. He credits the Rail Authority for bringing together allies on both sides on the issue.

As the Biden administration has renewed interest in infrastructure, Matthews sees other funding opportunities coming down the pike. The proposed American Jobs Plan from the president is part of a stimulus package which includes infrastructure investments. Matthews says the plan carves out $80 billion notionally, for passenger rail over a period of eight years. He did note this funding is separate from the Amtrak plan that has been discussed. As Amtrak has laid out strong growth plans that lead future development into 2035, the Amtrak service plan did not include future development for the southern route. Matthews said this isn’t the first service plan he has seen. “This is the beginning of a conversation, not the end,” he said. Proposals and future bills coming up, Matthews says, are opportunities which will allow for a discussion about restoring the North Coast Hiawatha, the Pioneer and segments along those routes.

He also told BSPRA, while they may see support for Amtrak to bring passenger rail services to rural areas in the state, they may also see those opposed to Amtrak becoming more involved. The economic impact Amtrak brings to rural areas of the country, such as Montana, is one of the reasons why there has been such strong support from state representatives for the Empire Builder and other passenger rail services.

Matthews says it’s very clear what Amtrak does for the community it serves. He told rail authority members, “it’s not Amtrak’s profits, but rather community profit.” Out of the roughly $2 billion that has been appropriated for yearly spending on Amtrak funding, the total economic benefits returned come out to be around $10 billion.

Missoula County Commissioner Dave Strohmaier noted because of the significance of the Empire Builder, as BSPRA works toward expanding services, they are not trying to diminish or trade the Empire Builder for any other route. “It’s not a zero-sum game, it’s a both and, it’s a way of enhancing our overall national networking system,” the commissioner stated. Matthews added. “More services in the southern part of the state is not going to do anything bad to the service that already exists in the northern part of the state. It’s going to be additive and incremental.”

The Rail Authority is working toward approving the drafting of a letter to Montana’s Congressional delegation requesting full funding for restoring passenger rail. Also, in discussion at the meeting, members are considering petitions from Stillwater and Carbon counties to join the Rail Authority. Both counties have formally started the process to form a resolution to become members. To garner support for the Rail Authority, the group’s board has been looking to seek support from local towns and counties in neighboring states.

Treasurer Jerry McDonald who represents Sanders County said county leaders from Kootenai and Bonner are considering issuing letters of support. McDonald says he expects an invitation for discussion soon. The treasurer has also reached out to the City of Spokane and Spokane County for their support. All Aboard Washington will also give aid to the authority as they ask congressional delegations for support and recognition of the Rail Authority’s efforts in Montana.

McDonald says BSPRA has received an endorsement from the City of Thompson Falls. “That will be forthcoming in their letterhead to us, as well as outdoor congressional delegations and the governor,” McDonald said. He also expects the same endorsement from Plains in the near future.