Skip to Content
Streetsblog USA home
Streetsblog USA home
Log In
High-speed rail

Midwest High-Speed Rail Group Starts Lobby Push for House’s $4B Bill

mrri_new_2.jpgMap of the proposed midwest high-speed rail system. (Photo: TrainWeb.org)

Congress agrees that the White House's ambitious high-speed rail plan should be funded next year -- but the House is pushing for $2.8 billion more than the Senate, setting up a high-stakes battle that rail advocates want the House to win.

Enter the Midwest High-Speed Rail Association (MHSRA), a non-profit group pushing for a high-speed rail network that would use Chicago as a hub and ultimately extend through eight states.

The MHSRA already has savvy allies on the Hill and a coordinated network of governors, but it recently added a website that helps voters track how their House members voted on next year's high-speed rail budget. That sort of on-the-ground lobbying could prove crucial as Appropriations Committee members from both chambers of Congress convene next month to hash out a final deal.

Yet the midwest is not the only region where lawmakers are working overtime to give their home districts a leg up in high-speed rail funding. House Democrats from upstate New York earmarked $4.6 million for local rail improvements in the same bill that gives $4 billion to a high-speed system, while six New England governors have formed an alliance along the lines of the MHSRA.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog USA

‘We’re Not Copenhagen’ Is No Excuse Not to Build a Great Biking And Walking City

A team of researchers identified eight under-the-radar cities leading the local active transportation revolution — and a menu of strategies that other communities can and should steal.

June 30, 2025

Monday’s Headlines, Ranked

New reports rank the best cities for biking and the best complete streets policies. Plus, the robotaxi wars have begun.

June 30, 2025

Washington State Is About To Have the First Pro-‘Woonerf’ Law in America

Washington state is making it legal for cities to have people-centered streets in a first-in-the-nation law.

June 30, 2025

Friday’s Headlines Are Doomed

Philadelphia transit is falling off the fiscal cliff, with other major cities not far behind. And the effects of service cuts on their economies could be brutal.

June 27, 2025

Talking Headways Podcast: Why We Need ‘Universal Basic Mobility’

In a very special podcast, we’re joined by the great Madeline Brozen of UCLA to talk about how guaranteed transit lowers people's stress.

June 26, 2025
See all posts