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Old Posted Dec 25, 2008, 9:21 AM
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LMich LMich is offline
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Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: Big Mitten
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I'm not quite sure what it is Penske gets, but I've heard rumors that the companies that are contributing get a crack at buying the naming rights to each station, but I don't know if there is anything truth to that.

BTW, Dearborn and the rest of the cities, have picked the location for its station on the Detroit-Ann Arbor commuter line:

Concept:



Quote:

All cities on new Ann Arbor to Detroit rail line pining for new depots


By Jason Carmel Davis, Press & Guide Newspapers

December 17, 2008

DEARBORN - City of Dearborn officials have said they have a three-phase plan in place to complete the city's new high-speed rail passenger intermodal station that will be a part of an Ann Arbor to Detroit commuter rail line. If funding is allocated, the station would sit on the south side of Michigan Avenue just east of Brady near the Henry Ford.

But Dearborn isn't the only city looking for funding for an updated station, as each city on the line — Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti, Wayne/Westland and Detroit — have plans for new or updated intermodal stations, according to city of Dearborn Director of Economic & Community Development Barry Murray.

City officials presented plans on Nov. 18 for the high-speed rail passenger intermodal station that is set to be a stop on the Ann Arbor to Detroit commuter rail line and a new home for the city's Amtrak station.

It is also slated to house a terminal for SMART and other buses, taxis and limousines and have parking for commuters' cars and bicycles.

The new station is to be about 20,000 square feet and at Michigan and Elm, placing it within walking distance of Greenfield Village and the University of Michigan-Dearborn campus.

The station is part of a larger project to bring light-rail commuter services to the region that includes the other four cities listed above.

"The new station would be in a much better location because at the current station, there's not much for people to just get off a train and walk to," Murray said.

Plans in the works for new stations elsewhere

The new Ann Arbor station, currently located on Depot Street, would be moved closer to the University of Michigan Hospital campus, Murray said, possibly to accommodate the nearly 17,000 employees of the hospital.

The Ypsilanti station would sit near the city's "Depot Town" area, just minutes away from the campus of Eastern Michigan University, Murray said. The area has an operating station that would need to be re-opened, he added.

The Wayne/Westland location would be located near Henry Ruff and Michigan Avenue near a library, Murray said, and would serve as a hub for riders on their way to Detroit Metropolitan Airport. Riders departing the Wayne/Westland stop on the way to the airport would then flag down a taxi or catch a shuttle bus to the airport, but the possibility exist of a stop at the airport, Murray said.

The city of Detroit's stop is currently located in the New Center area near Woodward Avenue and Milwaukee, Murray said. If a new station is erected, it would sit across from the current one.

"(The city of Detroit) is still looking for financing for the project, but they do have designs for it," Murray said.


Dearborn station tobe completed in phases

The Dearborn station is to be built in three phases at a cost of $30 million, according to Murray. The first phase would be about 3,000 square feet and cost between $1 million and $5 million, depending on what work has to be done to prepare the tracks, he said.

It would be completed by October 2010, the same year the Ann Arbor to Detroit commuter line is projected to open with an initial four trains. The start date for a three-year trial run would be Oct. 25, 2010, according to Murray.

"In order for us to receive funding for the future phases of the project, we have to have a head count of 1,000 passengers a day," Dearborn Mayor Jack O'Reilly said last month. "We'll have the capability to have four runs a day, so we're going to have to do some work to prepare some things to entice passengers, like provide incentives and things of that nature."

The second phase would be an expansion to about 15,000 square feet and allow the station to accommodate 15 trains on the commuter line.

The third phase would give the capacity for high-speed train traffic. Murray said all phases of the project could be completed between 2020 and 2025. He said officials with the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG), the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT), railroad companies and Amtrak are working on plans to add lines to existing tracks to accommodate the new rail cars, along with the Amtrak and freight cars.

While the scope of the project is a large one, funding for the second and third phases of the projects remains an issue, Murray said.

"Getting the funding will depend on the ridership," Murray said, adding that any federal awards the city seeks will include plans for this project.

Officials are hopeful plans for student housing between the two parking decks behind West Village Commons comes to fruition, as it is thought those students in the units, which may be 250-500, will be frequent users of the system.

Contact News Editor Jason Carmel Davis at (734) 246-2652 or jadavis@heritage.com.
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Last edited by LMich; Dec 25, 2008 at 10:04 AM.
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