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Northern Lights Express High Speed Rail: MN APA Conference September 2011

Northern Lights Express High Speed Rail: MN APA Conference September 2011. NLX Overview. Minneapolis. Duluth. Project Structure. Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is lead federal agency Mn/DOT is the lead state agency WisDOT also a participating agency

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Northern Lights Express High Speed Rail: MN APA Conference September 2011

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  1. Northern Lights Express High Speed Rail: MN APA Conference September 2011

  2. NLX Overview Minneapolis Duluth

  3. Project Structure • Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is lead federal agency • Mn/DOT is the lead state agency • WisDOT also a participating agency • NLX Alliance is the sponsoring agency: St. Louis, Lake, Isanti, Pine, Anoka, Hennepin Douglas Counties, Cities of Minneapolis and Duluth, Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe

  4. Project History 1985 – Last Amtrak passenger rail train runs between Minneapolis and Duluth 2001 – Duluth corridor study 2007 – Alliance activities begin Dec 2007 - Comprehensive Feasibility Study and Business Plan completed 2008 – NLX Board formed; Federal grants and state bond funds received Aug 2009 – Current project underway

  5. Passenger Rail Planning

  6. Project Goals • Alternative mode time-competitive with the auto and cost-competitive with air • Integrates with other modes and improves system continuity • Provides opportunities for rail oriented development at station sites • Reliable high-amenity service

  7. Corridor Assessment Process

  8. Corridor Speed

  9. Schedule

  10. Ridership, Revenue and Cost Preliminary Assessments (refinements in progress) • Ridership: 96 million passenger miles in 2020;130 million in 2040 • Revenue: $28 million in 2020; $38 million in 2040 • Cost: $950 million including infrastructure, stations and equipment

  11. NLX Support

  12. Minneapolis Terminal Station Northstar Commuter Rail Central Corridor LRT Hiawatha LRT

  13. Minneapolis Transportation Interchange

  14. Duluth Terminal Station

  15. Environmental Concerns • Impacts to State Trails • Native prairie remnants along rail corridors • Mussel impacts at bridge crossings • Wetland impacts • Impacts to historic and archaeological sites • Noise • Contamination potential

  16. Public Comments received • Support for project –Cambridge, Hinckley • Desire competitive pricing/travel times • Connectivity with other transportation options • Anticipated economic benefits • Concerns about project funding/ local impact • Concerns about safety, noise, traffic • Impacts to freight rail operations

  17. Next Steps • Complete environmental documentation for public review in early 2012 • Preliminary engineering 2012-2013 (recently received $5 million in FRA funding) • Final engineering to follow • Alliance will continue to seek funding to support the project

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