The Ohio House has earmarked $25,000 a year in the state’s $61 billion, two-year budget to advance expanding passenger rail service.
The money would pay for Ohio to join the Interstate Midwest Passenger Rail Commission, which would connect Ohio to the major players in passenger rail.
Plans are in the works for a rail line connecting Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, and Dayton. Another route has been proposed for a line from Chicago to Pittsburgh that would pass through Columbus.
All Aboard Ohio, a nonprofit group that supports public transportation and passenger rail, pushed for Ohio’s reinstatement into the multi-state commission.
Mitch Radakovich, board chair of All Aboard Ohio, told lawmakers that it’s a step in the right direction because Ohio is missing out on important conversations and funding opportunities as state officials look to expand Amtrak service.
The multi-state commission includes a group of state leaders that advocates for passenger rail improvements.
"Every single state goes up and they share what work they're doing for each of the routes that they're planning. Amtrak is there, the Federal Railroad Administration is there," Radakovich told WBNS 10TV News.
Ohio left the commission in 2013 during Ohio Gov. John Kasich's administration. The Republican governor turned down $400 million in federal money to help pay for a Cleveland-to-Cincinnati passenger train, The Columbus Dispatch reports.
However, railway expansion in the Buckeye State is still years away, and passenger rail politics change depending on who is in power at the state and federal levels.
During Biden’s administration, Amtrak announced several Ohio cities could be included in its next passenger rail expansion, The Dispatch reported. In December 2023, the Federal Railroad Administration allotted $500,000 to plan for four passenger rail routes across Ohio.
But last month, Elon Musk, who is heading up DOGE’s efforts to shrink the U.S. government, said Amtrak should be privatized. Shortly after, Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner resigned, AP News reported.
During President Donald Trump’s first term, he sought to cut Amtrak's funding, which received about $2.4 billion in annual federal support in 2023. Congress last week approved $2.42 billion in annual funding for Amtrak through September 30.
The federal money Ohio received is for planning—to work out what is needed to make the corridors happen. The Midwest corridor would connect Chicago and Pittsburgh through Columbus and Fort Wayne, Indiana.
The second corridor called 3C+D will run through Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton and Cincinnati. A study on the 3C+D corridor found that a passenger rail could have an economic impact of between $25 million and $47 million on the state of Ohio each year.
Scioto Analysis conducted the economic impact study, which was funded by the Columbus Foundation through a $17,000 grant awarded to All Aboard Ohio. They determined passenger rail service could bring as much as $16 million in economic impact to the greater Columbus area every year, WBNS TV10 previously reported. Cities like Columbus and Delaware haven’t had a passenger train since the late 1970s.
Radakovich said that joining the Interstate Midwest Passenger Rail Commission shows the state supports the future of transportation in Ohio.
“It’ll allow people to be connected to jobs, people to be connected to families, to utilize some of the incredible healthcare systems that are across our state,” Radakovich told TV10 News, regarding the benefits of passenger rail service.
But the appropriation is still not guaranteed. The House state budget is not official. Lawmakers in the Senate still have to vote on it or hash out differences before sending the budget bill to Gov. Mike DeWine. The deadline for a balanced budget is June 30.
