(The following column by Alan Kline appeared on the Des Moines Register website on January 29.)
DES MOINES, Iowa — A year ago, Gov. Chet Culver pledged to Iowans that our state would become a world leader in biofuels. Today, we have an opportunity to demonstrate the value of those fuels in a big way, a way that would provide a needed service to the state.
Because of higher demand for oil worldwide and global politics, we’re fooling ourselves if we think that gasoline prices will ever drop back to the level we enjoyed in the late 1990s. We need to develop additional transportation systems that place less dependence on oil. One mode of transportation with great potential is rail.
A decade-old plan calls for Iowa to participate with our neighbors in Illinois to restore passenger trains to the route connecting Chicago with the Quad Cities, Iowa City, Des Moines and Council Bluffs/Omaha. Illinois has begun serious planning for its portion of the service. Amtrak recently released a new study outlining the costs of implementing service between Chicago and Rock Island. The cost was lower than anticipated, and the Illinois state government is serious about making it happen.
A similar Amtrak study for an extension to Iowa City is expected within a few weeks, and a study for a further extension to Des Moines later this year. The reality is that the trains should run all the way to Omaha.
The Iowa Legislature needs to appropriate funds to begin the process. The costs are not astronomical. The tracks involved, on the Iowa Interstate railroad, are in better condition than they were a decade ago, but would still need some upgrading. Modest station facilities would need to be provided. Equipment would need to be leased or purchased to operate the train. Long lead times in building such equipment mean that work should begin quickly.
The time is ripe for several reasons: People around the country are discovering, or re-discovering, the advantages to rail travel, whether for short and medium distances or cross-country travel. Amtrak ridership on all routes sets records each year.
With the starvation budgets forced upon it by the Bush administration, Amtrak’s fleet has dwindled, while the demand increases. That may change. Congress is showing bipartisan support for making passenger rail a stronger part of our nation’s transportation policy. Legislation is pending in Washington that would enable states to apply for federal grants for passenger-rail service, as is now done for highways and airports.
Amtrak is also looking for a partner to test and develop new types of self-propelled passenger-rail cars and has funding available to help with the cost. It recently was unable to come to terms with the state of Vermont for such a partnership. Ideally, Iowa should step in, allowing us to begin the service at a lower cost.
Even better: Show the world that this new rail technology can be fueled with the biodiesel we produce in our state.
Rail service would not be a replacement for either highway or air service in Iowa. As we move further into the 21st century, it is critical to develop a transportation policy that uses the three major modes – highway, air and rail – each to its best advantage.
We will continue to need safe highways and an efficient aviation system. Rail will provide another option for Iowans, at a lower cost. It will make Iowa colleges and universities along the line more accessible to potential students without cars. Business people will enjoy the freedom to work on a laptop or place cellular phone calls without restriction.
We shouldn’t stop there. Another route worth considering would pass through central Iowa, connecting the Twin Cities to Kansas City. The cost would be higher, because the rail line is more congested and would need to expand. But the rewards in stimulating our economy would be great, as has been demonstrated elsewhere.
A strong transportation system is essential to the way of life that we have come to expect as Iowans and as Americans and to a vibrant economy for our state. The governor and Legislature should act this session to start this process, before other states pass us by.