Passenger trains for America: Montana!
Advocating for the North Coast Hiawatha, and for national passenger rail.Action alert - Write your governor!
The Western Governors Association (WGA)
is holding their 2010 annual meeting in Whitefish, Montana, June
27-29. With a focus on energy efficiency and
conservation, this is an ideal venue to promote the economic,
environmental, and social benefits of passenger trains. Locating the
meeting near Glacier National Park is also a significant reminder of
railroading's ongoing benefit to America. Montana
Governor Brian Schweitzer and First Lady Nancy Schweitzer will even host
a tour on BNSF Railway's Glacier Express through Glacier National
Park on vintage, restored business cars.
Governor Schweitzer has promised to promote the benefits of passenger rail services, and the need to grow these services, to other governors. Ask your governor to work for more long distance passenger trains through the link on this National Association of Rail Passengers page.
Governor Schweitzer has promised to promote the benefits of passenger rail services, and the need to grow these services, to other governors. Ask your governor to work for more long distance passenger trains through the link on this National Association of Rail Passengers page.
About the North Coast Hiawatha.
The
North Coast Hiawatha was a Chicago to Seattle passenger train that
operated between
Minneapolis/St. Paul and Spokane, Washington, through southern Montana.
This route was discontinued in October, 1979. In 2008 Congress ordered
a feasibility study of the route, to determine what re-opening it would
involve. That feasibility study is now completed. You may download the complete
study below.
Why the NCH should be reinstated.
According to the Amtrak feasibility study, over 350,000 passengers would ride the North Coast Hiawatha each year. A larger than average percentage of operating costs would be covered by ticket, food and beverage sales. Restoring the route would bring direct economic benefits to the community from jobs created during construction, and about 269 permanent Amtrak jobs. It would also cause spillover economic benefits: Amtrak is marvelous for business, and for tourism. As the study reminds us, "Airline service is limited or non-existent in most of the communities along the route." And the North Coast Hiawatha would create "a safe and environmentally-friendly travel option for the three million annual visitors to Yellowstone National Park."
The NCH: It's time to roll up our sleeves. How to get involved.
Other Links
We need to reinforce Montana's commitment to passenger rail, and work for a national system that includes the North Coast Hiawatha. Visit the MontPIRG student group for a petition to sign, sample letters to your representatives, and other immediate actions. To work for long-term funding of national passenger rail, visit the National Association of Rail Passengers. If you're interested in working for funding at the state level, we need to hear from you! Please e-mail us using the contact link in the sidebar.
Other Links
On Facebook:
Michael Boise's Bring Amtrak Back Facebook page, an online petition in support of the North Coast Hiawatha with lots of links and conversation.
Story Line Trains, which sponsors this page, has a free newsletter with passenger rail alerts, as well as children's train stories and railroad history news.
The complete feasibility study from Amtrak, in PDF form.
Route of the North Coast Hiawatha/Cities affected
The map shows stations on the proposed North Coast Hiawatha route. Click on the marker for a link to that station's page (we'll have them all working as soon as we can). You can zoom in for a closer view, or click on the link below to view it in a larger window. The purple markers are potentially reinstated stations--those that haven't had Amtrak service since 1979.View Route of the North Coast Hiawatha in a larger map
Spread the word. Use the Tell and Share widget at the top of this page for quick access to email and social networking sites.
This page is not affiliated with Amtrak; their official site is at www.amtrak.com.
This page is sponsored by Story Line News, an online magazine about trains. Our goal is to promote train stories and history for the next generation of train lovers.
- Help spread the word! You can use the handy little Tell and Share widget below
Potential stops on the North Coast Hiawatha: a page of information about each city and contact info for local representatives. Start with Missoula,on line and being developed now; the rest are coming soon. You'll be able to link to station pages through this map by clicking on the city's marker).
Spread the Word!
