From: AustinBusinessJournal
August 3, 2009
The Austin-San Antonio Commuter Rail District is asking the Federal Railroad Administration for $17.5 million to fund environmental clearances and preliminary engineering services related to the creation of a passenger rail line and the relocation of Union Pacific along the corridor.
The Texas Department of Transportation has submitted the actual application on behalf of the rail district. Alison Schulze, administrator and senior planner with the rail district, said the $17.5 million amounts to half of the money the district needs to begin the clearance and relocation efforts. The other half is coming from matching funds from the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization, the San Antonio-Bexar County Metropolitan Planning Organization and other groups.
“The competition for this money is fierce,” Schulze said, adding that it’s unclear how many different high-speed rail projects around the country will be vying for funds and what stage they are at now. Still, she points out that passenger rail between Dallas and San Antonio has been cited as a national priority for years. “We have a meeting with FRA later this week. Even if we don’t get the money this time around, at least we get our foot in the door and they can see that we have a credible project.”
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment