September 1, 2006 |
Contact: Jafar Karim 605-782-1224 |
DM&E Railroad Brings First Rail Passenger Service to Sioux Falls in Decades
New Trackage Rights Extend DM&E Service
Sioux Falls, SD – The Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern (DM&E) Railroad is offering its first passenger service in Sioux Falls this weekend. The excursion rides are being offered to employees, invited guests and media as a part of DM&E’s 20 Year Anniversary celebration and is a peak at what may come along with the railroad’s $6 billion upgrade proposal. In its original application for the upgrade to the federal Surface Transportation Board, DM&E outlined the planned passenger excursion service to the Black Hills. The DM&E was able to reach Sioux Falls in part as a result of the State of South Dakota’s negotiated sale of the State’s “core line” to the Burlington Northern Sante Fe Railway (BNSF). That agreement provided access rights the DM&E on portions of the BNSF tracks. The celebration will kick off this Sunday, September 3, in Sioux Falls with train rides and a picnic for its employees. Members of the media also are invited. An RSVP is requested.
What: Train Rides & Picnic for Employees and Media Celebrating 20 Year Anniversary
Where: Pasley Park, Sioux Falls, SD
When: Sunday, September 3
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Background
The DM&E Railroad was formed in 1986 as the result of the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad decision to abandon its line running from Rapid City through the middle of South Dakota. After a successful effort led by US Sen. Larry Pressler to stop the abandonment, a group of investors purchased the line to form the DM&E Railroad. The DM&E has grown considerably since then, having acquired the Iowa, Chicago & Eastern Railroad (IC&E) in 2002. Today the railroad serves eight states with over 2,500 miles of track providing direct access to Chicago, the Twin Cities, Kansas City, and to critical water ports. The company is headquartered in Sioux Falls and has approximately 1000 employees, over 9,000 rail cars, and 200 locomotives. DM&E, along with the IC&E, is the nation’s largest Class II Railroad.
The DM&E is in the process of growing even more, with its proposed $6 billion rail upgrade project. The project, which would add 260 miles of new track and rebuild 600 miles of existing railroad, would turn DM&E into a Class I railroad. The DM&E has applied for a $2.3 billion loan from the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to help finance $6 billion in rail upgrades to improve safety, meet growing energy demands, create jobs and assist farmers in getting a better return on crops. The FRA recently issued an environmental review that reaffirmed the project’s value. The FRA is taking public comments until October 10, 2006.