Travis and Bexar County Judges team up for Lone Star Rail Corridor trains
December 8, 2023 - TRA Newswire -
County Judges from two of Texas' largest metropolitan areas say that it's time for trains to connect their regions and beyond.
Bexar County Judge Peter Sakai and Travis County Judge Andy Brown were on X (formerly Twitter) to advocate for passenger rail service in the Lone Star Rail Corridor. (see Fox7 Austin story and video: https://www.fox7austin.com/video/1377512)
Judge Sakai wants fans to arrive relaxed and ready for San Antonio Spurs games by getting off I-35 and coming in by train. Travis County Judge Brown says the time is right for building a service not only between Austin and San Antonio but extending it all along the Lone Star Rail Corridor to Dallas-Fort Worth and down to Laredo.
The mayor and judges are getting a grass roots push from younger citizens of Texas involved in moving plans forward. Two groups, Restart Lone Star Rail District, founded by Clay Anderson and SART, San Antonians for Rail Transit have been vocal this year about having trains as a transportation choice.
Anderson told KXAN-Austin "A train just makes sense. It's a no brainer, and I feel like it is a low-hanging fruit. If we can get this done, then we can get so many other things done." He went on to highlight the need to swiftly build a high-quality service to entice people to forego their cars.
In April, the Texas Department of Transportation filed for a Corridor Identification Planning Grant with the Federal Railroad Administration to advance passenger rail along the entire Lone Star Rail Corridor (the I-35 travel corridor) from Dallas-Fort Worth to Laredo.