The U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) are seeking public comments on 10 service and route options for passenger rail service connecting Oklahoma City, Fort Worth, Austin, San Antonio, and South Texas.
The options, which are evaluated in a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS), are for new and improved conventional and high-speed passenger rail service. The DEIS addresses major regional markets within the Texas-Oklahoma Passenger Rail Program corridor in three geographic sections, with referred alternatives recommended for each section.
The three sections of study are the Northern Section, which includes Edmond, Okla., to Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas; the Central Section, which includes Dallas and Fort Worth to San Antonio; and the Southern Section, which includes San Antonio to south Texas (Corpus Christi, Brownsville, Laredo, and the Rio Grande Valley).
“This corridor is home to major financial, energy, and education centers that people rely on every day,” remarked U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. “Providing efficient, more reliable, and faster higher-speed passenger rail options to move between cities is crucial for the economy and the population to thrive."
Current passenger rail service along the Interstate 35 (I-35) corridor includes three intercity Amtrak services. They include service from Oklahoma City to Fort Worth (Heartland Flyer), Fort Worth to San Antonio (Texas Eagle), and Los Angeles to New Orleans through San Antonio (Sunset Limited).
Details of the Texas-Oklahoma Passenger Rail Study will be given at four public hearings, where residents will also have a chance to understand how their communities may be affected. Comments on the 10 options and the seven recommended preferred options identified by USDOT and TxDOT will be accepted at the meetings and during a 45-day public comment period.
"I encourage those along the I-35 corridor to participate in the comment and public hearing opportunities so that they are able to learn more and share their input,” said Secretary Foxx.
“More passenger rail service will help relieve already congested roads along the I-35 corridor and help this region manage the significant population growth on the way,” stated FRA Administrator Sarah E. Feinberg. “I encourage everyone to provide feedback on the 10 options that FRA and the Texas DOT have presented to continue moving this effort forward.”
More than 10 million people currently live along the 850-mile corridor, which is expected to grow by 39 percent in Texas and 25 percent in Oklahoma City by 2035.