The Alabama city is commissioning a study to assess the potential for 'Amtrak-like' connections to Nashville, Atlanta, and other Southern cities.
The city council of Huntsville, Alabama approved nearly $350,000 to study the potential for intercity rail that could connect the city to Birmingham, Nashville, Atlanta, and Chattanooga.
As Scott Turner reports for AL.com, the study will "recommend and prioritize corridors for further study as well as identify potential station locations in Huntsville and stakeholder coordination." It will focus on "Amtrak-style" heavy rail rather than local transit.
The move comes after Huntsville was excluded from a proposed national rail map developed in 2021. According to Manager of Urban and Long-Range Planning Dennis Madsen, "This was not necessarily a deliberate oversight by the federal government when they updated the plan." Rather, "They were simply taking existing state rail plans and incorporating them, but we do think that is something that needs to be remedied going forward, especially as the government continues to consider the expansion of passenger rail nationwide or on a regional basis."
FULL STORY: Huntsville spending $350,000 to explore rail service to Nashville, Birmingham, Atlanta
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