TUCSON, Arizona (KOLD News 13) – Amtrak is seeking to add 39 new routes, 160 new cities, and 20 million new passengers over the next 15 years.
Passenger traffic has not expanded for decades. But now it has a friend in the White House, President Joe Biden, who has driven Amtrak for most of the past 30 years.
If the service is expanded, one of the new routes will run three times a day between Tucson and Phoenix and another from Tucson to Los Angeles.
Amtrak officials held a media round table with some of the people who need help to make this a reality.
“This investment makes so much sense in many ways,” said Tucson Mayor Regina Romero. “This investment represents a common sense investment in our state.”
Also on board are Democratic MPs Ruben Gallego and Greg Stanton.
“Earlier this month, through our Invest Act, the House of Representatives approved a historic $ 32 billion investment in Amtrak over five years,” said Stanton. “That is three times as much as the current level of funding.”
Upon completion, Amtrak will build a new train station in Marana as well as Coolidge in the hopes of picking up passengers who would rather take a train than travel on future congested highways.
“Phoenix and Tucson are the second and third fastest warming cities in the United States, respectively,” said Romero. “This underlines the need to offer environmentally friendly travel alternatives.”
Rail passenger service between Tucson and Phoenix was suspended in 1995 because it was not profitable, but Amtrak believes the Sun Corridor has grown significantly since then and can support the new route.
Most of the mayors along the suggested route tend to agree. Eleven mayors, both Democrats and Republicans, have signed a letter asking Congress to fund the upgrades and new routes.
“There was absolute support, no question about it,” said Romero. “The mayors of Oro Valley, South Tucson, Sahuarita and Marana jumped on it immediately.”
Copyright 2021 KOLD News 13. All rights reserved.
.
Comments are closed.