Politicians and RR Execs Line Up Behind the Chicago Hub

According to Eight governors and Chicago mayor team up to advance Midwest HSR corridor, form steering group with freight-rail stakeholders, this impressive list of politicians has officially lined up behind the Chicago Hub HSR proposals:

• Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn
• Iowa Gov. Chet Culver
• Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels
• Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm
• Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty
• Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon
• Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland
• Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle
• Chicago Mayor Richard Daley

They have also established a steering committee with various stakeholders, like:

• Amtrak Chairman Tom Carper
• Union Pacific Railroad Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Jim Young
• CSX Corp. Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Tony Ingram
• BNSF Railway Co. EVP of Law Roger Nober
• Norfolk Southern Corp. VP John Friedmann
• CN VP of American Government Affairs Karen Phillips
• Kansas City Southern Railway Co. Assistant VP of State and Local Affairs Kevin McIntosh
• Association of American Railroads President and CEO Edward Hamberger

Not only has the mayor of the Chicago Hub's center and eponymous city signed on, but most of the Chicago-Hub and MWRRI states has signed on. Their states are all but the outermost states of these proposals, Kentucky, Nebraska, and Kansas.

MWRRI = Midwest Regional Rail Initiative

Also, every major freight railroad in the area has signed on, as has Amtrak.

This seems almost too good to be true. What is going on behind the scenes?

Is President Obama himself somehow involved? His political base is in Chicago, so he may want to reward his supporters there with some juicy pork.

The only major entities missing are CP Rail, whose tracks Amtrak currently uses for the Empire Builder and the holder of the likely route between MSP and CHI, and RailAmerica, owner of the former Pennsylvania Railroad mainline from Chicago to Fort Wayne. Otherwise, quite the impressive group - hopefully an effective one.