to other cities in region
Gas prices in Missoula have topped $3 a gallon - again. While this won't stop many people from driving their cars to work every day, it will probably encourage them to think harder about how to get the most miles for their money.
That's why this is an excellent time for us all to be thinking about how to support a proposed Amtrak route that would connect passenger rail service in Missoula to other large cities in Montana, as well as major hubs outside the state.
Right now, we have to drive our gas guzzlers to Whitefish to catch the state's only passenger rail service, the Empire Builder, which links 11 rural communities along Montana's Hi-Line to Chicago and the West Coast but completely misses the state's largest cities.
The proposed new route would complement Montana's existing service with stops from Missoula to Billings, and bring rail service back to a part of the state that hasn't seen a passenger train since federal funding cuts effectively shut them down in the late 1970s.
There has been plenty of interest and increasing motivation to bring the service back in the years since, as more cars clog the roads and fuel prices continue to trend upward. A number of countries overseas, especially in Europe and Asia, have invested heavily in their rail systems - and those investments now appear to be paying off.
In the United states, the expanding interest in public transportation is apparent with Amtrak's burgeoning passenger counts; last year, ridership reached a record 26 million passengers. The popular Empire Builder, meanwhile, is also increasing its ridership and now moves more than half a million passengers each year.
Montana is ideally suited to support public transportation. Its particular rural nature makes air transportation to many small communities unduly expensive, if not downright impossible. Taking to the highway is often the only other alternative, which can be problematic for those who don't drive.
Missoula in particular draws a large number of these folks from outlying communities who come to get medical care or to shop. Meanwhile, the region's overall population growth has put more cars on the road, a fact that continues to fuel winter air-quality concerns in the valley.
So it's no wonder Missoula's City Council members voted unanimously in favor of a resolution to support the reauthorization of the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2007, a federal bill that currently includes a directive to study a possible route through southwestern Montana.
That bill was recently approved by the Senate and must now be reconciled with similar legislation from the House. With any luck, the study will make it through the reconciliation process and be undertaken right away. The study is important because, once it is complete, it will allow the state to apply for federal matching funds to expand passenger rail service.
Once up and running, we predict the new route will see its share of passengers, and that few of them, if any, will be riding it at the expense of the Empire Builder. Like the rest of the region, Missoula is ready for a convenient, fuel-efficient addition to its transportation menu. A new Amtrak route fits the bill.
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