Wis. rail to stop near Madison's Monona Terrace

A high-speed rail line connecting Wisconsin's two largest cities will make its Madison stop near the Capitol at Monona Terrace, Gov. Jim Doyle announced Thursday.

The convention center stop was chosen over three other Madison locations: the airport, the Kohl Center on the University of Wisconsin campus and a site just east of downtown.

Wisconsin was awarded $810 million in federal stimulus money to construct the line between Madison and Milwaukee. It also got $13 million to improve the existing line between Milwaukee and Chicago and study extending the line to Minneapolis-St. Paul.

Construction of the rail station in Madison, as well as others along the line in Brookfield, Watertown and Oconomowoc, will come in part from $24 million in federal money, along with contributions from the local communities.

The train will make two stops in downtown Milwaukee and at that city's airport. Construction on the 85-mile line is scheduled to begin this year and be completed by 2013.

Tickets for the trip, which is expected to take about 75 minutes, are estimated to cost as much as $33 one way. Amtrak estimated that more than 361,000 people will use the line in its first year.

Doyle, originally an advocate of the train stopping at Madison's airport a couple miles east of downtown, said he was won over by many people who said they would prefer the station be at the center of the city near the Capitol.

A study of all the options by the state Department of Transportation showed that a downtown stop would maximize ridership and provide easier access to buses, cabs and other ways to get around town, the governor said.

"To me, it was very, very clear that Monona Terrace is clearly the best option," Doyle said at a news conference outside the convention center.

Monona Terrace opened in 1997 based on a 1938 Frank Lloyd Wright design. It sits on the shores of Lake Monona, where the plane carrying Otis Redding crashed in 1967, killing the soul singer who was on his way to a concert in Madison. Monona Terrace is just two blocks away from the Capitol and within walking distance of the campus.

While the train station will be near Monona Terrace, its exact location was still being discussed.

The city plans to add parking near the area and the station could spur other economic development including a new hotel and public market, said Madison Mayor Dave Cieslewicz. He called the spot "by far the best place for a high-speed rail connection in Madison."

Cieslewicz said he would like to see the new station named after Doyle, who is leaving office at the end of this year.

The candidates seeking to succeed Doyle are divided on high-speed rail. Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, a Democrat, supports it. Both Republicans -- Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker and former U.S. Rep. Mark Neumann, oppose it.

Walker issued a statement after the Madison stop announcement vowing to kill the high-speed rail project if elected because he believes it is a waste of taxpayer money. It's unclear what, if anything, Walker could do to stop the project since spending of the stimulus money has already been approved and work is under way.

Published by:  Businessweek