From Michigan Radio

Thursday, the Obama administration plans to announce which states will receive billions of dollars to build high-speed rail systems. Michigan officials are among those paying close attention.

Last year’s federal economic stimulus act included $8 billion for developing high speed rail. The Obama administration has been wading thru the various proposals sent in by states and is now ready to announce the winners.

Michigan is part of an 8-state bid, which would include a high speed rail hub in the president’s home city of Chicago. The bid has a high speed rail link to Detroit.

http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/michigan/news.newsmain/article/0/0/1604817/Top.Stories/Michigan’s.High.Speed.Train.Plan.On.Track.or.Derailed.

From Mass Transit Magazine/Associated Press

A day after delivering a State of the Union address aimed at showing recession-weary Americans he understands their struggles, President Barack Obama intends to award $8 billion in stimulus funds to develop high-speed rail corridors and sell the program as a jobs creator.

Obama and Vice President Joe Biden plan to announce grants for 13 major corridors during a town hall meeting in Tampa, Fla., Thursday, the president’s first public appearance following his speech to the nation. It’s an attempt by the White House to show that getting Americans back to work is the president’s top priority and that he has a plan for how to do it.

The president’s visit to the region means Florida’s proposal for a high-speed line connecting Orlando and Tampa is likely to receive funding. California’s proposal for an 800-mile-long rail line from Sacramento to San Diego and a nine-state proposal in the Midwest are also considered strong contenders.

http://www.masstransitmag.com/publication/article.jsp?siteSection=3&id=10557&pageNum=1

From the St. Joseph Herald Palladium

BENTON HARBOR – Momentum is growing to lobby state transportation policy makers for a meeting to resolve the future of Amtrak stops in Bangor, New Buffalo and St. Joseph.

All three stops are served by the Pere Marquette route, whose future has been clouded by a proposed rail service realignment for the Midwest.

The Southwest Michigan Planning Commission’s executive director, K. John Egelhaaf, is among local officials lobbying to meet with the Michigan Department of Transportation, said Nickolas Musson, an associate planner with the commission.

“We’re just trying to establish this dialogue between MDOT and the people in this region because they really need to know what’s going on and understand what’s going on,” he said.

From WSJM 1400 AM & 94.9 FM

Local planning officials are working on a plan to save the Pere Marquette Amtrak line, as documents from the Michigan Department of Transportation indicate that the agency may be planning to phase it out. Executive Director of the Southwest Michigan Planning Commission K- John Egelhaaf says that maps for a project called the Midwest Regional Rail Initiative don’t include the local passenger line:

http://www.wsjm.com/pages/6212740.php?contentType=4&contentId=5471785

From The Windsor Star

The companies behind a $400-million proposal to build a second Detroit River rail tunnel have issued a pre-bid notice — a call for companies to prove qualifications — to conduct the environmental assessment for the project.

Borealis Infrastructure and CP Rail, co-owners of the 100-year-old Windsor-Detroit rail tunnel, plan to build an adjacent tunnel to accommodate larger double-stacked railway cars and possibly high-speed cross-border passenger service.

http://www.windsorstar.com/Rail+tunnel+proposal+moves+closer+reality/2483399/story.html