HomeMy WebLinkAboutResolution No. 279-25 - Resolution - Big Sky North Route Analysis
RESOLUTION
Supporting Inclusion of Rochester, Minnesota in the Big Sky North Coast Corridor
Route Analysis.
WHEREAS, in the Amtrak Daily Long-Distance Service Study Final Report to Congress
(January 2025), the Big Sky North Coast Corridor (former North Coast Hiawatha Route) is
one of fifteen routes identified by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) as “preferred”
for restoration or establishment; and
WHEREAS, the Big Sky North Coast Corridor is the only new long-distance route in the
nation included in the FRA’s Corridor Identification and Development Program (CIDP); and
WHEREAS, the Big Sky North Coast Corridor crosses eight states, including Minnesota,
and will provide transportation options for those seeking healthcare services, traveling for
business or leisure, and will serve as a catalyst for economic development and community
revitalization across the region; and
WHEREAS, the Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority, sponsor of the Big Sky North Coast
Corridor, will begin Step 2 (Service Development Planning) of the CIDP in late 2025 or early
2026, which includes analysis of alternative routes within the overall corridor; and
WHEREAS, Rochester, Minnesota, is the largest metropolitan area on existing railroad right-
of-way connected to the Big Sky North Coast Corridor that is not currently included in the
analysis of alternative routes within the corridor; and
WHEREAS, Rochester, Minnesota, as home to Mayo Clinic, is a national center for
healthcare regularly serving patients from east and west along or near the Big Sky North
Coast Corridor; and
WHEREAS, multiple studies indicate that passenger rail is typically seventeen to eighteen
times safer than motor vehicle travel, and even more so in winter weather, making
passenger rail a preferred means of strengthening patient access to Rochester; and
WHEREAS, the proposed route alternative would use existing rail right-of-way from St. Paul,
Minnesota through Northfield, Faribault, Owatonna, and Rochester to Winona, Minnesota,
and could serve multiple colleges, university facilities, and other post-secondary institutions
as well as significant civic, cultural, and recreational resources.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the Common Council of the City of Rochester,
MN that the City requests the Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority and the Federal Railroad
Administration include in their route analyses an alternative alignment that passes through
Rochester, Minnesota.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the City of Rochester commits to engaging in service
development planning efforts that assess the desirability and viability of a Big Sky North
Coast Corridor alignment through Rochester, Minnesota.
PASSED AND ADOPTED BY THE COMMON COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
ROCHESTER, MINNESOTA, THIS __________ DAY OF _______________, 2025.
___________________________________
PRESIDENT OF SAID COMMON COUNCIL
ATTEST: __________________________
CITY CLERK
APPROVED THIS _____ DAY OF ______________________, 2025.
___________________________________
MAYOR OF SAID CITY
(Seal of the City of
Rochester, Minnesota)