Federal Grants to Fund New Dearborn Train Station
A rendering of the new Dearborn train station with walkway over the tracks to The Henry Ford. The eastbound lanes of Michigan Avenue can be seen in the upper left.
Dearborn is set to get an all-new train station adjacent to The Henry Ford as part of a series of grants announced by President Barack Obama. The new station could be a much-needed shot in the arm for downtown West Dearborn.
Michigan is set to receive $40 million to build the new passenger train station in Dearborn and renovate stations in Troy and Battle Creek.
The $40 million for Michigan is part of a larger $244 million award to the Michigan, Indiana and Illinois state transportation departments to fund a high-speed rail initiative that would link Pontiac and Chicago.
The Detroit Free Press reports that the money for Michigan is a fraction of the $800 million the state Department of Transportation had requested to shore up Michigan’s segments of the Pontiac to Chicago rail network, dotted with old, cramped train stations and rails that need improvements.
The $8 billion for high speed rail projects is part of the $787 billion in federal stimulus money approved last year.
A ground level rendering shows what Dearborn's new train station may look like.
It isn’t clear whether the $8 billion is enough to create a truly high speed rail system expansive enough to make a difference in commuter travel among car-conscious Americans but the money earmarked for Dearborn most certainly will be a positive improvement for our city.
Combine the new rail station with a plan to bring student housing to downtown Dearborn, new movie theatre and restaurants and west Dearborn could begin to feel more vibrant. The stimulus money sure is a nice way for Dearborn to start the year 2010.
January 28th, 2010 at 11:09 pm
This definitely could be a good thing for west Dearborn. If connected to a light rail or bus rapid transit it will be even better. However, the city has to create a masterplan that takes these things into account for growth to happen. Unfortunately I don’t have much faith in that part of it. Every time I hear about zoning changes at city council meetings it seems like a real failure to look ahead. Hopefully I’m wrong on that part.
January 28th, 2010 at 11:10 pm
Oh, I also love how they continue to misadvertise this as “high speed rail”. It’s nothing of the sort. But the overall project is definitely a step forward.
January 29th, 2010 at 7:08 am
Now this is exciting news for West Dearborn (and East Dearborn, to a lesser extent)!
Strangely, while the proximity to our house is only a matter of a mile (as compared to the current station), the psychological distance is huge in that my first thought upon reading the news and studying the intermodal station’s details at the City of Dearborn website was, “We’re taking the train to Chicago to go shopping for the weekend.” And maybe, that’s one of the intended responses from this project.
January 29th, 2010 at 8:47 am
Maybe we can sell tours to the “Chicken Homes”! We are “Cool” but until completed I’ll be on my unicorn! Please pass the capri sun, thank you!
January 29th, 2010 at 11:45 am
Same old BS. If O’Reilley is waiting Dingell to assist, we won’t hold our breath — they are both blowhards, so don’t wait for this to happen anytime soon.
January 29th, 2010 at 2:12 pm
Same old BS. Anonymous blowhards on the Internet bitching, whining and complaining about news in Dearborn. Never happy with any announcements, progress or change.
At least the ratio thus far is 3:2, postive to negative. Hopefully people can stay positive.
Personally, I think this is awesome news, and 2010 is looking like it could be an exciting year for us.
Paul, I’m not sure what you mean by the “high speed” part. It’s my understanding that part of this project will be to upgrade the rails to in fact allow for high-speed trains between here and Chicago.
January 29th, 2010 at 5:23 pm
Johnny – I think most of us have been disappointed so many times with the promises made that we just don’t believe anymore – so we are leary of anything happening.
January 29th, 2010 at 5:58 pm
Johnny Christmas, if you are so sure, I have some swamp land for sale. Just some more pie in the sky politician talk — won’t believe it, because its just idle political talk.
January 29th, 2010 at 6:03 pm
Johnny, the improvements in track are for new sidings and new track mainly in the final miles into Chicago where the majority of current delays happen. This is where we will hopefully see huge decreases in travel time where priority now is for freight.
The increase in speed will be only in western Michigan (97 miles between Kalmazoo and Porter, IN) where Amtrak owns the track. That will bump up top speed to 110 mph from the current max of 95 mph and really won’t do much to decrease travel time.
This money is nowhere near what would be needed to create true, grade separated, electrified, high speed rail like you see in Europe and Japan. Many of those trains are hitting 200 mph for large stretches of time. I think that’s the vision many people have of high speed rail and this project, though a step forward, is not it.
January 29th, 2010 at 7:32 pm
Well then I really feel sorry for you all to be so snarky and cynical at every turn. Has life beaten you all down so much that this is your first instinct every time you hear news? You may think I’m naive, but I hope I’m never, ever, ever as negative as you all. There’s an old SNL character that comes to mind when I read your posts: Debbie Downer. “Hey, do you think Bob’s single? He’s handsome, smart, and charming. Of course, so was Ted Bundy.” Wah-wah.
Thanks for the clarification Paul.
January 30th, 2010 at 6:25 am
I think this is a great idea! Remember, the train goes both ways–Dearborn to Chicago–Chicago to Dearborn. This area still has a lot to offer with its museums, culture, casinos, etc. Stay positive on this one.
January 30th, 2010 at 10:15 pm
If you build it, they will come.
February 1st, 2010 at 9:25 am
A new train station! Cool. I hope its near the Smith’s Creek Station inside the Village. It’d be neat to have the ultra-modern train station on one side and the old 1860s station on the other side.
February 1st, 2010 at 10:04 am
I think this is great! I think it will be great for the businesses on Michigan too! yeah!
February 1st, 2010 at 10:29 am
“If they build it, they will come!” That’s what was said about the Renaissance Center!! We have looked forward to progress in Dearborn for a long time. We have been waiting for “the gateway project” to be completed for how many years? For years we saw a Caliente Grill Coming Soon banner flying high. Now it is the same for Fatburger! It was a nice area with the Shoemaker, Barber and Bridal Salon with the Merc across the street. How long are we going to blame the economy for Dearborn’s problems? Do we really want student housing in downtown West Dearborn? People throw out ideas and our city council just eats it up. Pipe dreams! I travel with my family frequently on Amtrak. I would love nothing more to see a working intermodal station in West Dearborn. But we have heard it all before. President Bush the first was in Dearborn before he left office in 1992 promising funds for new train station (connecting to GFV) and high speed rail service. We have heard the promises before. Small businesses cannot afford the high rents that these new developments require. Businesses are in and out before we can even stop in to eat or shop. No one likes to be a naysayer, but sadly in Dearborn we have to be realists.
February 3rd, 2010 at 5:46 pm
I heard the NEW CIAO is going to open inside the new traini station.
February 4th, 2010 at 12:37 am
After hearing the mayor speak tonight I really have no hope about this project. It will be built because the money is there but I think it will do nothing for the city because the city will fail to act on it. He seems to see it as a magical cure-all, apparently with no work needed. Build it and they will come.
Unfortunately the city has to properly plan in order for development to come. In Birmingham and Troy they have an entire development plan around their new station. Here he couldn’t even begin to answer a simple question of what the city will do to ensure that the station is a catalyst for development.
I also couldn’t believe how little understanding he has of the transportation projects going on around metro Detroit. An elevated rail up Woodward? He didn’t seem to understand the difference between heavy rail (the commuter project) and light rail (what they’re trying to get on Woodward and even down Michigan Ave into Dearborn at one point).
And then he spread some strange myth that the reason no rail transit exists in downtown is because of steam pipes. I’m not old enough to have ever seen the trams that Detroit once had but even I know they ran through downtown. Light rail today would be no different.
He’s an intelligent man when it comes to detailing legal cases and talking about the intricacies of budgetary issues but he really finally proved to me tonight that he knows absolutely nothing about urban planning.
February 5th, 2010 at 6:48 am
I live in Ann Arbor and have worked in Dearborn for the past five years. I am so happy to see this transit plan showing signs of moving forward. My biggest concern is whether or not there will be feeder transit leading to/departing from the stations. Also, does this new station have ample parking nearby? Or, will one have to drive to the older Dearborn station if one needs to park a car? Keep the details coming.
February 5th, 2010 at 7:31 am
Thanks for you comments Paul and from what I have been seeing and reading you are right on track!
February 10th, 2010 at 5:50 pm
This train station could be a bad idea. All you need to do is drive past the bus stop at Fairlane on a Saturday night to see what im talking about. I fear this train will be just another way the trash of Detroit will invade our great city.
February 10th, 2010 at 8:11 pm
This is going to be soo cool! Now I have a new place to railfan and take pictures of the trains that go through dearborn!
February 12th, 2010 at 1:48 pm
Everyone who supports this should know there is a Cato Research paper in which it is pointed out that not one of the “light rail” systems including the People Mover in Detoit make an operating profit. This means that there must be continuous tax payer support. In other words, it will be a continuous drain on the public to support the train.
February 16th, 2010 at 2:39 pm
There are references above to the ‘new’ location. Isn’t the improved station going to be at the same place as the current one?
February 17th, 2010 at 1:24 am
Diogenes, you could also say roads are a continuous drain on the public but they do their part in job growth that makes it worth it. A good mass transit system is no different. Implemented correctly within a larger overall plan it will be an important component in job growth.
My worry is that it will not be implemented correctly in Dearborn. I have no faith in this mayor or leadership to know what to do to make it a success, especially after hearing the mayor make so many mistakes and now being certain just how far ahead of us Birmingham and Troy are with their plans.
John, the station is being relocated to what was/is Elm St., just east of Brady.