Passenger Rail Meeting to be held this Friday, September 24, 9:00am at the Orchard in Baldwin (St. Croix County).

 Craig Thompson, Executive Director of the Transportation Development Association (TDA) of Wisconsin, will keynote the Annual Meeting of the West Central Wisconsin Rail Coalition this Friday from 9:00 a.m. to Noon at the Orchard Banquet Center in Baldwin. The meeting is free and open to the public.

 TDA is a statewide advocacy and research organization supporting development of all modes of transportation, with the goals of building on the state’s transportation strengths and addressing its transportation weaknesses.

 The meeting, hosted by the St. Croix County Highway Department, will also feature speakers from the Wisconsin and Minnesota Departments of Transportation, Momentum West and the West Central Wisconsin Rail Coalition.

 Donna Brown, Planning Chief, WisDOT’s High Speed Passenger Rail Office, and Tom Beekman, WisDOT Northwest Region Planning Chief, will update participants on the state’s Milwaukee-Madison High Speed Rail extension and the Wisconsin Rail Plan 2030 process. Dave Christensen, MnDOT’s State Rail Plan Project Manager, will provide updates regarding implementation of the Minnesota Rail Plan, studies planned for the St. Paul-Hudson-Eau Claire Gateway corridor, and the study now underway to determine the route of future High Speed Rail between Madison and St. Paul.

 Also speaking will be Noel Eggebraaten, President of Momentum West, the regional 10-county economic development organization, on why High Speed Rail will benefit our area; Scott Rogers, an Eau Claire businessman who is Co-Chair of the West Central Wisconsin Rail Coalition, who will discuss the realities and myths of the high speed rail debate; and Ray Willoughby, an Eau Claire banker and Chair of the group’s Coalition Building efforts, who will provide details on how participants can get involved in the issue.

 The Orchard is located on Highway 63, just north of the I-94 exit at Baldwin. The meeting is free and open to the public, but an RSVP is appreciated. To reserve a seat, call 715-874-4673 or e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it The meeting will begin at 9 a.m. and conclude by noon. 

The West Central Wisconsin Rail Coalition provides leadership and coordination to develop passenger rail service through west central Wisconsin as part of a regional strategy to ensure a balance transportation system necessary for long term sustainable economic growth.