The West Wendover City Council tentatively approved spending $800,000 for a new rail road station that would give the Nevada/Utah border town access to passenger train travel.
The new station will replace the old defunct facility in Wendover, Utah and hopefully will become a stop on the famous California Zephyr’s route between Chicago and Oakland, California.
Currently the famous train passes through Wendover around 1:00 AM west bound and 7:30 PM east bound but does not stop.
While the idea of adding a Wendover stop was originally pushed by the local gaming industry, it is also gaining support from the public at large.
Currently travel to any location outside of Wendover is restricted to either automobile or bus. The addition of regular rail transportation could be a boon not only to the tourist industry but also to locals who wish to avoid the four hour round trip drive to either Elko or Salt lake.
Cost of a ticket to either Elko or Salt Lake could be under $30.
“I don’t know if the station will pay for itself directly,” said City Councilman Jerry Anderson. “But the addition of passenger rail service will be a great benefit to the city.”
In addition to the east-west route a rail link to Ely has caught the imagination of some White Pine County residents.
While there already is a rail link to the south of Wendover it must be upgraded before it can take passenger speeds.Currently the rail line is rated only for trains traveling below 20 miles per hour.
If improved the Wendover/Ely line would not only take passengers but also freight to and from the Robison Mine south of Ely.
So there’s a project that won’t pay for itself, might be used by a hand-full of people, travels to the same place (Salt Lake Intermodal Hub) as the Greyhound bus, only stops at inconvenient hours twice a day (bus stops 4 times a day), won’t create any jobs for the local community, and will require long-term maintenance and upkeep.
All this and it will only cost the local, state and/or federal taxpayers and initial outlay of almost a million dollars.
Sounds like a bad plan to me but a feather in the cap for someone.
I think this is great! I am excited.
Has anyone verified that Amtrak will agree to the stop?
Maybe more important, has anyone verified what Amtrak is going to DEMAND at the station to meet their overblown specifications? Amtrak always charges A LOT (ask the victims in Lancaster PA, who have borne the load of multi-million dollar cost overruns to renovate their station). They are NOT reasonable to deal with and if a station doesn’t meet THEIR specifications, the trains don’t stop.
Registered Voter–
You say it won’t create any jobs for the local community, but WILL require long-term maintenance and upkeep? I bet that will create jobs for the local community!
I ride it up and down the west coast, the Starlight Train. I always wondered why they can’t stop in one of the most iconic towns in the area, and it’s a border town, right next to Bonneville! I couldn’t believe the news. Been wanting this for a long time. I will ride it yearly. And I know I’m not the only one. I will come out for the air show every year. That will give me a nice little scenic vacation to look forward to every year.