PIERRE, S.D. — A resolution in the South Dakota House is calling for support of the state’s congressional delegation and the Trump Administration for Amtrak service in the state.
House Resolution 6008 is sponsored by Rep. Tim Goodwin, a Republican who represents the 30th District, in the state’s southwestern corner. It was introduced on Feb. 5 and is slated for a hearing on Tuesday, Feb. 18. It requests “full support of the South Dakota congressional delegation, in cooperation with the Trump administration, to work for an Amtrak route between Denver and Minneapolis-St. Paul by way of Rapid City, Pierre, and Sioux Falls.”
The bill does not address funding for the service.
The Denver-Twin Cities route was one of 15 included in the Federal Railroad Administration’s final Long Distance Study report, released in January [see “Houston-New York service gets highest ranking …,” Trains News Wire, Jan. 21, 2025]. It was one of five routes tied for seventh in the report’s preliminary ranking. It would require the greatest expense in terms of infrastructure work necessary to launch the service — up to $5.83 billion, more than the next two most expensive routes combined — because of the lack of Class 4 track needed for passenger operation. Overall, the FRA estimated the service would cost $44.39 billion to $59.03 billion to launch.
The resolution points out South Dakota is the only state in the contiguous 48 that has never had Amtrak service.
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