December 12, 2024 - TRA Newswire -

Bringing back passenger rail service that was lost over a half-century ago is not cheap. But it is needed to stimulate the economy on Northern Oklahoma and South Central Kansas. 

Officials today heard Kansas Department of Transportation Rail Project Manager Cory Davis lay out what it will take to add infrastructure improvements and determine operational costs to extend the daily Heartland Flyer from Oklahoma City to Wichita and Newton, Kansas. A Service Development Plan is required to be completed by the state in order to qualify for available federal rail funding. 

The price tag for 226 miles of new and improved sidings, double-tracking, improving yard facilities, layover tracks and corridor-wide speed increases is estimated at $573 million. Federal rail grants may be able to pick up the majority of the capital investment costs, with some Oklahoma and Kansas state funding along with local and regional shares to round it out. 

The Heartland Flyer, which runs one daily round trip from Fort Worth to Oklahoma City would be extended north and meet Amtrak's national network Southwest Chief Train in Newton, allowing underserved towns and cities in Oklahoma and Kansas access to more travel options in the U.S.

A unique funding formula for new service that was made available under the Infrastructure Law passed by Congress, would allow the states to ease in with operating costs for the first six years. Amtrak, on year one, would upfront 90% of the operating costs with the states share increasing each year by 10% until year 6, when states would assume responsibility for any downside. Ridership and revenue would be expected to increase during the start-up years without putting a burden on states for operation of the trains. 

Initial numbers showed that in the 4th year of operation the Heartland Flyer would carry over 33,000 local passengers between Oklahoma City and Newton, Kansas. Those numbers do not include passengers that began their journey south of Oklahoma City or transferred from the Southwest Chief at Newton, coming as far as Los Angeles or Chicago.  

A number of public officials from cities along the route expressed their support of the project, which if it can be kept on its current timeline, could be running by 2029. 

Towns that are underserved or not served at all by other means of commercial air or ground transportation would benefit from the new rail service. Those include Edmond, Guthrie, Perry and Ponca City in Oklahoma along with Arkansas City and Wichita in Kansas. 

While the initial cost of reestablishing service may shock some elected officials, according to the American Public Transportation Association (APTA), for every $1 invested in public transportation, $5 is generated in economic returns, amplifying the broader value of these projects for cities and states.  Beyond urban centers, the impact of these investments extends into rural areas, creating jobs and revitalizing local economies. 

The project website can be found at https://www.ksdot.gov/passrail/