The service as envisioned would sustainably operate four round trips daily from Eau Claire to St. Paul Union Depot initially, with future extension of the service to downtown Minneapolis as a high priority. Fares and transportation costs to travelers would be competitive, and travel time would be 1 ½ hours one way for the full trip. Amenities would include comfortable seating, tables, Wi-Fi service, and basic concessions including drinks and snacks. The station stops, as seen on the map above, would cover the major cities on and along I-94, with bus connections to nearby cities and enhanced transit service in on-line cities. Economic development around these station sites is expected to be a major outcome of the project.

Service could produce over 900,000 trips per year, 2.5% or more of the travel market

Fares would be 20-37 cents per mile, or a full-fare St. Paul-Eau Claire cost of $32

Fare discounts would accommodate regular, reserved, and family travel

Operation would represent an enterprise with $15-18 million annual revenues located in the area

Station-area development would attract significant building and provide multi-use facilities, similar to the $220 million + investments recently seen in Normal, Illinois, a city very similar in size and make-up to Eau Claire, along a new passenger rail corridor with all-day service

Service would promote talent retention for area businesses, increased settlement opportunity for families with multiple income earners, tourism, and other business and discretionary travel

Trains would bypass major freeway congestion along I-94, particularly west of Hudson

Conditional approval from Union Pacific and potential operators is allowing advanced planning

Transit connectivity includes express bus from St. Paul to MSP Airport, Green Line LRT, 22 Metro Transit bus routes, intercity bus and Amtrak connections, taxi and car rental services.

Future connections could include high-speed rail to Rochester, MN, and Mayo, LRT to Airport

Most significant challenges are still-to-be-identified infrastructure improvement (capital) costs and an existing operational bottleneck at St. Paul Union Depot, but with possible solutions under study.