COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio’s Senate has moved to eliminate funding for the state to rejoin a Midwest passenger rail planning group, public broadcasting’s Statehouse News Bureau reports.
The version of the state’s biennial budget passed by the House includes $25,000 for each of the next two years for membership in the Midwest Interstate Passenger Rail Commission, which links states seeking passenger rail improvements [see “Budget passed by Ohio House …,” Trains News Wire, April 11, 2025]. Ohio is one of four states eligible for membership that is not currently a member; it quit the group in 2013 after then-Gov. John Kasich turned down some $400 million in federal funding for new Amtrak service.
“I wouldn’t say that we’re anti-passenger rail, necessarily, but we’re also not going to hand over state authority to a third party that we really are kind of unfamiliar with,” Senate President Rob McColley (R-Napoleon) said, according to the news bureau report.
The commission has no legislative authority, but works to coordinate efforts among its member states for current and long-term intercity passenger operations. More information is available here. The effort to rejoin comes at a time when three new Amtrak routes in or through the state are among those in the Federal Railroad Adminstration’s Passinger Identification and Development program.
The Senate version of the budget would also eliminate the seat for a passenger rail representative on the Ohio Rail Development Commission, replacing it with a second freight rail representative.
The best way to go about this is to first determine if there are currently (1) a strong air market for Cleveland to/from Cincinnati and (2) a strong bus markets for Cleveland to/from Columbus and Columbus to/from Cincinnati. If there aren’t, then its not worth pursuing it as it would be a costly start-up and involve a significant state annual operating subsidy.
Bingo! It’s about density! And who figgers that out…
Some people just aren’t able to think outside the car. The Cleveland-Columbus-Cincinnati corridor deserves at least another serious look. Bad on Kasich for terminating the 2013 plans.
Not a lock but deserves a look into. Three cities are found in the same state, but there was no history of this being in a strong corridor.