Lafayette Commerce Plans Amtrak Summit
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowGreater Lafayette Commerce is planning a summit next week designed to discuss the potential loss of an Amtrak passenger route between Indianapolis and Chicago. The service could end in October unless state funding is secured. August 12, 2013
News Release
LAFAYETTE, Ind. – A statewide “all aboard” call is going out to draw attendance at a free Amtrak Summit, Wednesday, August 21, in Lafayette, Ind., where implications of the pending loss of some Indiana passenger rail service will be discussed and ideas formulated on what concerned individuals, businesses and organizations can do to preserve it.
Registration begins with a train whistle at 8 a.m., with opening summit remarks by Indiana State Senator Brandt Hershman at 8:30 a.m., at Faith Community Center, 5526 State Road 26 East, Lafayette, Ind. The center is just east of the Interstate 65/State Road 26 interchange. Reservations are not required for the free event, but appreciated, by calling (765) 742-4044 or responding at http://tinyurl.com/ktdsc5t.
The primary focus will be the Amtrak Hoosier State Indianapolis/Chicago passenger route, which could cease October 1, 2013, if state funding is not secured to preserve the service. The pending cessation comes under the Federal Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2008, passed by Congress and requiring state assistance rather than federal funding for passenger train routes of less than 750 miles.
While the Indiana General Assembly's current budget approved the Indiana Department of Transportation's use of discretionary funds to support the Hoosier State, the department has not committed the monies.
“Time is running short,” said Joseph Seaman, president and chief executive officer of Greater Lafayette Commerce, an area economic development group that is spearheading a group of numerous communities and organizations involved in hosting the summit.
“This summit will bring together interested parties so the best course of action for Indiana can be determined and actions taken,” Seaman said.
Speakers and panelists include government, community and industry representatives. Among them are Ray Lang, Amtrak's senior director of state and local government affairs; keynote speaker Tim Hoeffner, director of the Office of Rail, Michigan Department of Transportation, and vice chair, Midwest Interstate Passenger Rail Commission; and Randy Truitt, 26th District State Representative.
Among the industry representatives participating in a panel discussion are Eric Angermeier, Nanshan America general manager, and Fred Lanahan, Northeast Indiana Passenger Rail Association. Government speakers include mayors Todd Baron, Crawfordsville; John Dennis, West Lafayette; Tony Roswarski, Lafayette; and Stephen Wood, Rensselaer. Tippecanoe County Commissioner Tom Murtaugh and others also will present.
The Indianapolis/Chicago route, one of the busiest in the Midwest, carried 37,000 passengers in 2012. Currently both the Hoosier State and the Cardinal cover the route, together providing service seven days a week, with stops in Crawfordsville, Dyer, Lafayette and Rensselaer, Ind..
If the Hoosier State is dropped, the Cardinal will be the only train on the route, running from Indianapolis to Chicago on Monday, Thursday and Saturday, and from Chicago to Indianapolis on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
“We encourage attendance from all over the state,” Seaman said. “What happens on October 1 could impact the future of high-speed rail service, quality-of-life enhancement efforts in the state, business and employee recruitment, the tax base, and state and local economies. Whatever happens, we want it to be a proactive decision, not simply an expiration of a deadline that went unaddressed.”
More information is available on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/savethehoosierstate. Groups wishing to obtain more information may contact Greater Lafayette Commerce,
(765) 742-4044.
About Greater Lafayette Commerce
Headquartered at 337 Columbia St. in Lafayette, Greater Lafayette Commerce (www.greaterlafayettecommerce.com), whose roots go back more than 85 years, is a nonprofit membership organization supported by local businesses, industries and governments. Its mission is to advance economic and community prosperity for a superior quality of life.
Source: Greater Lafayette Commerce