Gov. Tim Pawlenty has formally signed on to an effort by Midwestern governors to grab federal stimulus money to build high-speed rail lines that would fan out from Chicago.
Pawlenty was one of eight governors who sent a letter last week to U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood asking for his support in obtaining some of the $8 billion that has been earmarked for rail projects.
Earlier this month, Pawlenty ordered a statewide study to determine the best rail projects for which Minnesota should pursue stimulus funding.
The governors' letter outlined a first phase of a high-speed rail network that would connect Chicago to Madison, Wis., the Detroit area and St. Louis. Those rail lines could be operating by 2014 at an estimated cost of $3.4 billion, the governors said.
Extending the Chicago-Madison line to the Twin Cities would be part of the projects' second phase.
The letter identified transit improvements already in place in Minnesota:
"... the St. Paul Union Depot project, which is being renovated to serve as a hub for Amtrak, inter- and intracitybus and passenger rail. In late 2009, the Northstar Commuter Rail Line, Hiawatha LRT and intra-city bus will all converge adjacent to the new Minnesota Twins stadium in Minneapolis."
The letter also raises the possibility of running the Chicago-Twin Cities line through Rochester and the possibility of running a passenger line between the Twin Cities and Duluth.
