Eventually, passengers will be able to travel from Chicago to the Twin Cities at a top speed of 110 mph, saving time and energy compared to driving.Wisconsin governor-elect Scott Walker campaigned on opposition to the "controversial train boondoggle," as he described it. Shortly after his election on November 2, Walker made good on his pledge to reject the Milwaukee-to-Madison project and urged the Federal government to instead spend the money of repairing roads.
However, the bureacrats at the Minnesota DOT are pressing ahead with public hearings anyway, according to the Wisconsin Radio Network:
Minnesota DOT Passenger Rail Director Dan Krom says it’s part of a “federally prescribed” process that examines possible routes in Midwest rail expansion, some of which do not include a route through Madison.
Although Walker has stalled work on high speed rail, Krom says Minnesota’s plans are in such a preliminary stage, Wisconsin’s activity is not a factor here.In other words, Minnesota rail advocates are patient people and will wait out the new Wisconsin governor if necessary.
By-and-large Minnesota residents are interested in expanding passenger rail. Krom cites input from 15 public hearings on rail, completed last year in which 90-percent of questions and interest was on passenger trains. He says Gopher State is interesting in getting connecting to the Midwest both physically and economically through Chicago.
This project, fulfilling no aching need and of untold true cost to US and state taxpayers, has never been more than a plaything for politicians and bureaucrats in Washington, D.C., Madison, and Saint Paul.
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