We may get an Amtrak stop yet

I was happy to read that the Federal Railroad Administration has bestowed $2.5 million on the Wisconsin Department of Transportation to investigate the expansion of passenger rail in the state. It sounds like $500,000 of it will be used to plan for extending Amtrak's Hiawatha line to Madison from Milwaukee.

As of now, Amtrak projects the initial trip times from Madison to Milwaukee will take one hour and 48 minutes, while the ride from Madison to Chicago will take three hours and 18 minutes.

The article notes that the city has selected 6 sites as possible locations for a train station:

The city is considering six potential areas: near the University of Wisconsin–Madison campus, downtown near Monona Terrace, on First Street and East Washington Avenue, on the near east side to the west of Fair Oaks Avenue, the site of the former Oscar Mayer plant, and lastly, near the Dane County Regional Airport.

I don't know what conventional wisdom says about locating your intercity train station. I'd bet most people using the train to come to Madison would be heading downtown or to campus. They may catch a cab or shuttle to the Epic campus in Verona, but they'll likely not want to get dropped off on the north side. Just a guess.

Should the station be in close proximity to other transit? Should it go to the airport? I can't see many people taking the train just to get to the airport. The new intercity bus depot, if there is going to be one, looks like it's to be built at the development taking over the Lake Street Ramp. No rails near that place. I'm thinking that the station should be downtown or near campus in close proximity to the forthcoming BRT lines.

Personally, I'd like the station to be downtown - in the DOA building as was planned back in 2010 or whenever it was. I have a friend who lives in downtown Chicago about a 15 minute walk from Union Station. I'd love to be able to jump on a C bus, get dropped off outside the train station, take the Hiawatha to Chicago, get my ass kicked at a war game of miniatures where I lose the Battle of Stalingrad despite cheating and having the atomic bomb, and then take the train home.

With the Republicans at the statehouse hostile to Madison getting passenger rail and a tight budget, I won't hold my breath for Madison to get an Amtrak stop in my lifetime. But hope springs eternal.