Passenger rail study to focus on service between Iowa City and North Liberty

The passenger rail discussion lives on in Johnson County.

With cost estimates for passenger rail service between Cedar Rapids and Iowa City coming back higher than expected, officials now want to explore a scaled-down plan in Johnson County.

Officials in Iowa City, Coralville, North Liberty, Johnson County and the University of Iowa are being asked to help fund the roughly $50,000 study. The study will build off last year's passenger rail study and evaluate the feasibility of a diesel-powered train service between Iowa City and North Liberty.

Jeff Woods, manager of marketing and business development with Cedar Rapids and Iowa City Railway, or CRANDIC, said the first phase of the study examined the feasibility of various services between Iowa City and The Eastern Iowa Airport, while the second phase aims to be more focused.

'Phase 1 was obviously a broad brush view at possible types of service on a both freight and commuter network,” Woods said. 'Phase 2 is going to be a much deeper dive into looking at North Liberty to Iowa City only and operating a line as commuter service only.”

Phase 1 estimated the probable cost for a service called Commuter Rail Transit, the cheapest option, at $250 million to $520 million, with annual operations and maintenance between $5.6 and $6.7 million in 2015 dollars. A streetcar model could cost up to $1.64 billion, according to the study.

Similarly to Phase 1, the second study will including funding from CRANDIC and the Iowa Department of Transportation. Officials with the Metropolitan Planning Organization of Johnson County have asked for $3,332 each from the UI, Johnson County, Iowa City, Coralville and North Liberty to cover the remaining one-third of the cost.

The study, which will take three to four months to complete, will work with stakeholders to determine the feasibility of a diesel-powered train service with six potential stops. The passenger rail-only service would have a 30-minute run time and trains would not exceed 40 mph.

The North Liberty City Council is scheduled to discuss the matter during its Tuesday meeting, while officials with Iowa City and Coralville have said they plan to support the study.

'It's definitely something we're going to go ahead and support,” said Coralville City Administrator Kelly Hayworth.

Geoff Fruin, Iowa City interim city manager, said the Phase 2 study should help officials determine what such a service might cost.

'It's definitely a worthwhile exercise to determine what the cost would be for such a service,” Fruin said. 'Ultimately, a project like this is going to require state and federal support.”

The Johnson County Board of Supervisors last Wednesday also expressed support for the study.

Dave Ricketts, UI director of parking and transportation said he was interested in the study, but UI officials hadn't made a formal decision on the funding as of Monday.

MPOJC officials hope to hear back from all five entities by June 20.

Woods said if Phase 2 finds an Iowa City-North Liberty service to be feasible, the entire length of track between Iowa City and Cedar Rapids could come back to the table.

'I think that would be looked at down the road, if the North Liberty to Iowa City segment were to make sense. I think that would be a logical progression to look at the longer one if the shorter one does make sense, or as demand grows for it in the future,” Woods said.