Restoring daily Amtrak service to the North Coast Hiawatha line potentially would generate $271 million annually in economic benefits to the seven states served by the line, according to a restoration plan written by the Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority, a Montana regional rail authority.
“With some of the best long-distance route ridership numbers in the nation and projected economic benefits of over $270 million annually between Chicago and Seattle, this route would be economically and socially transformational for urban, rural, and tribal communities in Montana and throughout the Greater Northwest Region,” Dave Strohmaier, the authority’s chairman, said.
The restored line would cost Amtrak approximately $68 million annually to operate, according to the authority.
Once the line reaches full operation, as many as 426,000 passengers could take it annually, according to a Rail Passengers Association research note. This includes as many as 29,000 new passengers who would not travel at all if the train did not exist.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill being debated in the U.S. Congress would authorize the U.S. Department of Transportation to evaluate all options for restoring service to several discontinued long-distance routes.
Big Sky asked the Rail Passengers Association to re-examine a 2009 restoration study prepared by Amtrak and assess the scale of economic benefits from restored passenger service.