Kansas Transportation Secretary Deb Miller is right that this probably isn’t the right time to make a funding pitch for expanded passenger rail service in Kansas, but it’s nice to have both a plan and the demand to justify pursuing such projects in the future.

Last week, Miller unveiled a study by her department and Amtrak that detailed four potential routes for passenger service between Kansas City, Oklahoma City and Fort Worth. The plans are of particular interest to Lawrence which would have connections to all of those routes through the Southwest Chief that already runs through our Santa Fe depot.

When they were canceling passenger service across the state 30 or 40 years ago, Amtrak obviously never anticipated the renewed interest that now is bubbling up for train travel. The projected ridership figures for the four routes outlined in Kansas were “attractive” according to an Amtrak official, who added, “We didn’t think they would be that high.”

Amtrak may be wishing it hadn’t ripped out all those train tracks a few decades ago. The estimated start-up costs for the proposed lines ranged from $156 million to $479 million, and that’s only the beginning. The routes also would require annual operating support of $3.2 million to $6.4 million.

It’s a lot of money, but, depending on gasoline prices and supplies, train travel may become an increasingly attractive option. If so, it might, in the long-term, reduce highway maintenance costs and decrease the demand for expensive highway expansions.

Although trains are an accepted and efficient means of transportation in many parts of the world, Americans have based almost their entire travel culture on the automobile. Even with higher gasoline prices that’s unlikely to change any time soon, but it’s good to see a growing demand and some growing attention for expanded passenger routes.