FRA rules 'no significant impact' for Minneapolis-Duluth express rail project

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has issued a finding of no significant impact on the Tier 2 project level environmental assessment for the Northern Lights Express higher-speed rail project between Minneapolis and Duluth, Minnesota.

The FRA's finding enables project staff to seek funds for final design and construction, Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) officials said in a press release.

The Tier 2 environmental assessment examined potential social, economic and environmental impacts along the project's 152-mile corridor. Released in April 2017, that assessment was prepared by the FRA and MnDOT in cooperation with the Wisconsin Department of Transportation.

Trains would travel at 90 mph on the the Minneapolis-Duluth route, which would travel through Douglas County, Wisconsin. Stations would be located in Minneapolis, Coon Rapids, Cambridge, Hinckley and Duluth, Minnesota, with an additional station in Superior, Wisconsin.

The project also would include one maintenance facility and one layover facility.

MnDOT will continue to work with the FRA to identify funding to support final design and construction, department officials said.