County joins effort to restore passenger rail service

Lake County has signed on to an effort to restore passenger rail service through the southern half of Montana.

County commissioners voted 2-1 on Wednesday, April 20, to join the Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority, an alliance of Montana counties with a mission “to provide for the re-establishment of safe, reliable and sustainable passenger rail service across southern Montana that increases opportunity and contributes to the health and well-being of people across the state and beyond.”

The Montana group is part of a wider, national movement to restore rail services provided by the North Coast Hiawatha route operated by Amtrak between Chicago and Seattle from 1971-79. That route enters Montana from the west at Sanders county, then heads through southern Lake County toward Missoula. Heading east, the route runs through most of Montana’s southern counties and exits into North Dakota from Wibaux County. Along the way, there are spurs that head south to Denver and Salt Lake City.

In all, the Hiawatha route crosses 26 Montana counties. Lake County is the 18th of those 26 to join the rail authority.

Membership in the rail authority currently comes with no financial obligation. Member counties are only required to appoint a director to serve a three-year term on the authority.

Commissioner Gale Decker cast the lone dissenting vote.

“I just thought potentially there might be some financial obligations to Lake County,” Decker said Monday. He said the agreement mentions lawsuits and grant applications, but he’s unclear as to how those costs would be paid. “If we are part of the authority, does that obligate us if there’s a lawsuit? I don’t think there is an obligation, but I guess I would just err on the side of caution.”

Commissioners Bill Barron and Steve Stanley supported the resolution to join the rail authority.

“I realize there may be some risk, but the way it’s set up I think we can get out before we have to take on a financial burden,” Barron said Tuesday.

Commissioners agreed to appoint Stanley to serve as the county’s representative on the rail authority.

The Montana movement is just starting to take off. Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority currently is focusing on getting as many counties as possible to join.

Montana also will be part of a Federal Railroad Administration study to determine the feasibility of resurrecting the former Hiawatha route and other discontinued Amtrak routes. The cost of resuming such routes would be paid for almost entirely through federal transportation funding.