5 Takeaways from the Annual Meeting for Midwest Passenger Rail

Written by Mitch Radakovich, Chair of All Aboard Ohio and experienced rail advocate.

From November 18-20, I had the privilege of representing Ohio at the Midwest Interstate Passenger Rail Commission (MIPRC) annual meeting in St. Paul, Minnesota. I gained valuable insights and connections to advance passenger rail in our state and wanted to share my main takeaways with you! 

1. State Sponsored Train Travel Works! 

Those who followed along with me on my journey from Cincinnati to St Paul saw that I had the privilege of riding the Borealis, Amtrak’s newest state-sponsored route. This service, which connects Chicago to St Paul via Milwaukee, has been an immediate success, with more than 100,000 passengers in the first 22 weeks. 

On the trip, attendees heard from FRA Administrator Amit Bose, as well as leadership from Minnesota and Wisconsin departments of transportation. We learned about the cooperation required from host railroads, as well as the importance of close coordination between state DOTs, Amtrak, FRA and local communities. Last, we learned that service was able to start before all improvements had been built – a testament to the relationship the team has with their host railroad. 

As the for ride – it was beautiful, smooth and comparable speed to driving! I was able to catch up on some work, chat with fellow passengers, and enjoy a snack from the café.  

2. Passenger Rail is a Bipartisan Issue. 

The Tuesday session began with updates from each of the member states’ DOTs & statehouse delegations. I was amazed with the diversity of backgrounds and interests from all the states. Most exciting to me was seeing the tremendous progress for passenger rail in states which resemble Ohio politically, such as Missouri. 

In Missouri, ridership is growing on their state-supported “Missouri River Runner”. Bipartisan support in the statehouse has been critical to this growth, including a record $16 million in this year’s legislative appropriations. This enthusiasm was driven in part from an extensive economic impact study conducted recently. We are reviewing this study at AAO to reapply in our state! 

I was also able to meet many representatives and senators from other states on both sides of the aisle, many of whom have offered to give testimony on the importance of MIPRC to their states. A direct quote from one Senator was “Joining MIPRC is one of the best things my state has done”. Overall, this session was extremely encouraging. 

3. Amtrak & FRA have passionate employees who want passenger rail to succeed 

I was able to meet with employees at Amtrak and the FRA serving in non-appointed leadership positions throughout the Midwest. This includes folks working in network planning, corridor development (including 3C+D and Cleveland-Toledo-Detroit!), and fleet planning. All these connections are extremely passionate about the success of passenger rail in the Midwest and are ready to work hard to ensure the momentum continues into 2025 and onwards. 

AAO will continue to work closely with our partners in these organizations, including introducing them to contacts in state and local government, connecting them with riders and community members for input, and providing a rider-centric opinion in the development process. 

4. Ohio’s routes are in good hands 

I had the privilege to speak with many of the partners at engineering firms which will work with ORDC to develop our Corridor ID studies in Ohio. These men and women have decades of experience and are truly passionate about their craft. They also are constantly working to improve their approaches to achieve project goals as efficiently as possible. 

Many of the people who will be working in Ohio have experience on other state-supported projects, both in the Midwest and across the country. Additionally, I was impressed to see their national and international rail development experience. We are in good hands! 

Moving forward in Ohio, AAO will continue to develop relationships with the consulting organizations involved on our projects. These folks will be a great resource to us moving forward! 

5. MIPRC membership is a critical next step for Ohio 

The connections that I was able to form on behalf of Ohio will still be valuable, but it would be such a benefit for representatives from our DOT and legislature to speak with their colleagues in neighboring states. I was able to see long-existing friendships between local leaders from Kansas, Minnesota, Michigan and Indiana, and I am pleased to report they want Ohio to join in the fun! 

The current statuses, lessons learned, and updates from the FRA and Amtrak are well worth the cost of admission. State leaders asked their counterparts questions about what went right and what went wrong in their respective projects. Connections were made which will be used year-round to improve rail development across the Midwest. 

The annual cost to be an MIPRC member is $25,000 (or 0.00083% of the cost of the $3 billion Brent Spence Bridge project in Cincinnati) and can be included in our 2025 Ohio Transportation Budget. We will be advocating strongly for this inclusion, including through sharing my learnings with leaders in the statehouse and at ORDC. 

Final Thoughts

Attending the Midwest Interstate Passenger Rail Commission’s annual meeting was an incredible opportunity to represent Ohio and gain valuable insights. The lessons learned and connections made will not only help advance Ohio’s rail projects but also strengthen our case for rejoining the Commission in 2025. By building on these relationships and leveraging the expertise shared, I am confident we can drive meaningful progress for passenger rail in our state.