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Amtrak: $8 billion in Federal Stimulus to Create High-Speed Rail Service
Eight billion federal stimulus dollars are being directed to Amtrak to develop a high-speed rail service.

Amtrak president Joe Boardman says the funding will be available through the end of Fiscal Year 2012, but state-supported projects eligible for the funds must meet some requirements.

Testifying before the Illinois House Rail Road Industry Committee, Boardman said the preliminary engineering and environmental study work must be complete and the state must have an agreement with right-of-way owners. That kind of work has almost been completed on a line that would link Chicago and St. Louis .

Tom Carper, chairman of Amtrak's board of directors, says trains on the Chicago-St. Louis corridor would operate at 110 mph.
Boardman says now is the best time to act on railroad upgrades and service because freight traffic is down.

Utilizing Chicago as a hub, high-speed trains in the Midwest would run to Minneapolis, Detroit , St. Louis , Kansas City and Louisville . High-speed rail is also being proposed in California, the Pacific Northwest, Southeast, and along the Gulf Coast.

(Illinois Radio Network)
05 12 09 by Newsroom
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