BAKER CITY — Matt Krabacher heard about the local effort to reinstate passenger rail service to Eastern Oregon, and he decided to lend his support — and time — to the cause.

He attended a meeting in December 2023, then helped in the effort to gather signatures in early 2024 to show local support. The group gathered 1,500 signatures, which were sent to Amtrak, the Federal Railroad Administration and Oregon legislators.

“One in 17 people in Baker County signed it, which is really cool,” he said. “I’m surprised and validated about the support for that petition.”

Community groups in Baker City and Halfway want to get Amtrak’s Pioneer Route back to Baker City, which ceased in 1997. The federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill, passed in 2021, is designed to invest $66 billion for reopening closed corridors of rail service.

“We already have the station, which is in really good condition,” Krabacher said, referring to the station located near the intersection of Broadway and 10th streets.

His interest in rail service comes from growing up in Sandpoint, Idaho, which is on Amtrak’s Empire Builder route.

“It leaves in the middle of the night and you wake up in the Columbia Gorge,” he said.

He also used trains frequently during the two years he lived in the Netherlands.

“It’s very accessible and easy to move around,” he said.

As for the local effort, he said passenger train service would be useful for those who need to access health care in urban areas, and the environment is a factor as well, since trains emit less emissions than cars.

“Public transit is more sustainable,” he said.

Also, he pointed out that trains keep running even if Interstate 84 is closed, which can happen any time of year due to weather or wrecks.

Background

To gather information about reinstating passenger rail service, the Federal Railroad Administration has held meetings to create a list of possible routes across the country, trim that list by priority, and then deliver that to Congress.

The administration is also conducting an Amtrak Daily Long-Distance Service Study. Krabacher said submitting comments in support of passenger rail is the best way to get involved right now.

Comments can be made online at fralongdistancerailstudy.org. The website also features a map of the current 15 Amtrak routes that range from 760 to 2,500 miles.

In addition to the local group, Krabacher is the Eastern Oregon vice president for the Association of Oregon Rail and Transit Advocates (AORTA), a non-profit citizen advocacy group working to “educate the public about the need for safe, fiscally responsible, environmentally sound transportation.”

To learn more, visit www.aortarail.org.

Another advocacy group is All Aboard Northwest, allaboardnw.org.

Anyone who would like to know more about the local effort, and sign up for a newsletter, can email neoregonpassengerrail@proton.me.