Montana News

MT government and business leaders work to save rail service

Posted: Feb 9, 2012 6:30 AM by Dennis Bragg- KPAX News
Updated: Feb 9, 2012 8:24 AM

MISSOULA- It's just an idea at this point and time is short, but Ravalli County leaders are exploring the idea of applying for a federal grant to keep rail service rolling to the Bitterroot.

Montana Rail Link (MRL) has filed papers with the federal government showing its "intent to discontinue service" from Missoula south to Ravalli County, saying the line's "low volume" makes it "no longer profitable".

That's a major concern for Ravalli government and business leaders, who firmly believe the line is a key piece of the county's economic infrastructure for the future.

Friday, county commissioners have scheduled some time to discuss applying for a federal Transportation Infrastructure Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grant of $2 million-$3 million to keep the line operational.

Ravalli County leaders have been worried about the future of the Bitterroot line for about 6-months now. This idea of applying for a TIGER grant only came up late last week. But there's reason to hurry. The pre-applications for the process are due on February 20th.

County Commissioner J.R. Iman tells me the TIGER funds could pay for "improvements to extend the longevity of the track." He says Ravalli leaders have also been in touch with Lake County to see if they can partner on a grant for the line extending north of Missoula, which is also in danger of being shut down.

Iman believes keeping the MRL spur lines going is critical to Western Montana's economy, especially in the future, saying leaders working on economic development "don't want the outlying areas to wither on the vine" without rail service.

Friday the board will discuss how to quickly gather enough information to support the initial application for funds.