Growing coalition lobbying for Ohio passenger rail plan in face of skeptical Republicans

Five professional sports teams have joined a growing coalition pushing for passenger rail linking Ohio's major cities, but Republican lawmakers remained skeptical Tuesday that the benefits would outweigh the costs.

The state's two-year transportation bill would allow the state to pursue $250 million in federal stimulus money to build passenger rail between Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati. A study on ridership and whether passenger service would interfere with freight traffic would be needed before construction could begin.

Republicans who control the Senate on Tuesday amended the rail plan in committee to require it to get the Legislature's approval to proceed, assuming federal funds are secured and the study results are favorable. The version passed by the House only required approval from the state Controlling Board, a panel controlled by Democrats.

The Senate plan is scheduled to go to the floor Wednesday, after which differences with the House would need to be reconciled.

Republicans are concerned about the rail plan's estimated $10 million yearly operating cost. They also question whether enough Ohioans will use it.

Three professional sports teams from Columbus — the Blue Jackets hockey team, the Crew soccer team and the Clippers minor-league baseball team — as well as the Cincinnati Bengals and the Cleveland Cavaliers support the rail plan.

"At a time when Ohioans are cutting back their expenses, why are we looking for things to spend more money on?" state Sen. Tom Niehaus, a Republican from New Richmond, said Tuesday. "We can't pay for the things we have today."

The estimated $10 million represents a fraction of 1 percent of Ohio's roughly $7.5 billion two-year transportation budget. But the amount of the subsidy would be determined by how many passengers use the train.

Rail supporters said Ohio lags behind other states in promoting train service.

"They're growing jobs, stimulating new investment, and saving travelers millions on travel expenses," said Jack Shaner, deputy director of the Ohio Environmental Council. "But in Ohio, we're missing out on those benefits."

The North Carolina intercity passenger rail system has seen 6 percent growth a year and its system costs $20 million a year to operate, said North Carolina Department of Transportation Rail Division Director Patrick Simmons.

There was a 20 percent to 30 percent bump last summer when gas prices spiked, and though that rate has subsided, the number of passengers is still growing, said Simmons, who testified before the Senate committee Tuesday about his state's experience with rail service.

While rail supporters say the plan could eventually lead to high-speed rail service, the trains that would run with the benefit of federal stimulus money would have a top speed of 79 mph and travel times comparable to cars.

Widespread passenger rail has been slow to develop in the United States because of sprawling suburbs and the American affinity for cars. But with volatile fuel prices, delay-prone air travel and a federal government ready to spend $8 billion on rail plans, states across the country are taking a harder look at trains.

The corridor between Ohio's three major cities is the most densely populated stretch in the country without passenger rail service.

Ohio ranks 40th among the states in terms of the amount it spends on mass transit as a percentage of total transportation spending, according to a recent report by liberal-leaning Policy Matters Ohio. Michigan spends 10 times more, while Pennsylvania spends 33 times more.

A Quinnipiac University Poll released Tuesday found that 64 percent of Ohio voters support the rail line between the major cities. However, 53 percent of respondents either said they were "not too likely" or "not likely at all" to use the train, compared to 46 percent who were "very likely" or "somewhat likely."