Federal grant may get Oxford rail station rolling

OXFORD – A federal grant could help bring a new railroad station to Oxford, city and Miami University officials said Wednesday.

That's one of the reasons why Oxford and university officials are considering asking for a U.S. Department of Transportation grant.

And that money may become a factor in their joint efforts to persuade Amtrak to create the first passenger train stop in the city in five decades.

Oxford officials met with university and Butler County transportation officials this month to discuss whether to apply for the grant through the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) program of the federal transportation department.

Among others, the program has granted hundreds of thousands of dollars for transit projects in Indianapolis and Cleveland.

"We are discussing the possibility of submitting a TIGER grant application," said Oxford City Manager Douglas Elliott Jr.

Derek Bauman, southwest regional director for All Aboard Ohio, praised the possibility of injecting federal money into bringing passenger rail to Oxford.

"It is exciting to see the Oxford Amtrak station project quickly gaining traction," says Bauman, whose pro-rail group also backed Cincinnati's recent streetcar development.

Last month Oxford and Miami submitted a joint request to Amtrak, which operates the passenger Cardinal Line that now travels through Oxford, to do a feasibility study to provide a passenger pick-up.

That would be the first of a number of steps required by Amtrak for municipalities to apply for railroad service. Amtrak has not yet responded to the feasibility study request, but that is not unusual, city officials said.

The federal grant effort may later become part of the overall effort to land an Amtrak stop should the rail service grant a feasibility study and then advance Oxford to the application stage.

Elliott said the federal grant may be submitted through the city's county partner, the Butler County Regional Transit Authority.

No timetable for deciding whether to pursue the federal money was announced.

Susan Schaurer, interim director of admission for Miami University, pointed out that the Cardinal Line, which runs through Indiana to Chicago, would benefit both the 16,000-student campus and city.

"As a university that attracts students from Ohio as well as throughout the U.S. and around the world, we support an initiative that would provide expanded travel options for Miami students," Schaurer said.

"Miami has a strong presence in the Midwest – the 10 top non-Ohio high schools with the largest number of applicants for fall 2014 were from the Chicagoland area – so having this option available for prospective and current students would be a helpful asset," she said.

Amtrak's Cardinal service between Cincinnati and Chicago currently is limited and inconvenient. Amtrak offers service from Cincinnati's Union Terminal only on Monday, Thursday and Saturday – departing at 1:23 a.m. and arriving in Chicago nearly 10 hours later. The return trip from Chicago arrives in Cincinnati on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday at 3:27 a.m.

The Cardinal passenger train stops could be three times a week and would only consist of a five-minute boarding and departing period, says Bauman, who is working with Oxford and Miami officials in their efforts.