Wisconsin Transportation Planning Program WISCONSIN DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION DIVISION OF PLANNING & BUDGET January 1981 DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION FEDERAL RAILROAD ADMINISTRATION WASHINGTON, D.C. 20590 ASSOCIATE ADMINISTRATOR Mr. Lowell B. Jackson Secretary Wisconsin Department of Transportation 4802 Sheboygan Avenue P. O. Box 7910 Madison, WI 53707 Dear Mr. Jackson: I am pleased to approve the 1981 Wisconsin Rail Plan Update. The benefit/cost methodology contained in the Update is also approved at this time. Please recognize that 49 CFR 266.15(d) requires that a plan update be prepared on an annual basis. Therefore, approval of this plan will expire exactly one year after the date of this letter. Upon expiration of planning approval, no applications for projects not contained in the previous year 1 s plan can be funded until a plan update is approved. Sincerely, . // //:t~~;~/ ..l ,,:·,.,,,,t _:i (__ ~----/-:,,~~';,~:;-:,.,:-- ; . ~--,, - Wi 11 i am E. Loftus// Associate Administrator for Federal Assistance RECEIVED JUL 2 7 l?J OFFICE or­ THE SEC!~~'f.l\RY 'SPEED LIMIT 55 It's a law we can live with. THE WISCONSIN STATE RAIL PLAN AN ELEMENT OF WISCONSIN'S TRANSPORTATION PLANNING PROGRAM Submitted to the Federal Railroad Administration U.S. Department of Transportation This document is also an ENVIRONMEN~AL IHPACT STATEMENT In Fulfillment of the Requirements of tiie Wisconsin Environmental Folicy Act Wisconsin Department of Transportation Madison, Wisconsin January, I 9 tn CERTIFICATION I, Lowell B. Jackson, Secretary of Transportation of the State of Wisconsin, pursuant to th~ authority delegated to my office by the Governor of the State of Wisconsin, in accordance with 49 CFR Part 266.lS(e) of the Federal Railroad Administration's regulations for Assistance to States for Local Rail Service, do hereby certify that the document submitted herewith constitutes an official update, superseding all previous official updates, of the State Rail Plan for the State of Wisconsin, as required by Section 805(c) of the Railroad Revitalization and egulatory Reform Act of 1976. , Secretary ent of Transportation i FOREWORD Faced with swiftly vanishing returns on their investments and a pro­ ductivity situation that threatens to consume their entire equity, members of the nation's railroad industry are today at a crossroads. For the most part there is little or no private incentive remaining to make the sizable investments needed either to keep. abreast of economic growth in the United States or merely to retain a condition of status quo. Many railroads now lack the necessary ftmds to make any type of constructive capital outlays. This planning document is intended to provide an exposition of the general condition and status of the railroads serving Wisconsin and an analysis of the alternatives for the disposition of lines potentially subject to abandonment. The plan provides the framework and guidance for public officials and other interested parties to attempt to solve or at least ease railroad problems as they arise. Wisconsin has in prior years published several rail plans and plan updates. The first, which qualified Wisconsin for 3R Act funds was dated December 22, 1975~ To make the State eligible for 4R Act funds .an expanded version was dated August 1, 1976. Subsequent updates to the 4R Act plan •;. were dated August 1, 1977, August 1, 1978, December 1, 1978, and December 1, 1979. This seventh in a series of reports contains many revisions and refinements of earlier information and analyses. Probably the most significant changes reflected in this update are refinements in the method­ ology for calculating benefit/cost ratios. The revised methodology brings the plan into agreement with the federal guidelines for benefit/cost compu­ tations. The rail plan is also written in a manner to assure fulfillment of the Wisconsin Environmental Policy Act (Section 1.11 of the Wisconsin Statutes). Thus this report includes a detailed analysis which weighs and considers the environmental implications of actions affecting Wisconsin's rail system. Although exempt from federal requirements for an EIS, system plans such as the State Rail Plan are categorized by Wisconsin law as "Type II Actions" which may or may not be major actions or significantly affect the quality of the human environment. Rather than attempt to determine whether the rail plan's impacts are major, the Department treated the initial rail plan document as a "Preliminary Environmental Report" (PER) and provided the PER to appropriate agencies and persons for review and comments. Based on the comments and hearing testimony, the Rail Plan was revised and the next plan version, dated August 1, 1977, constituted an Environmental Impact Statement in fulfillment of the requirements of the Wisconsin Environ­ mental Policy Act (WEPA). This update of the rail plan thus also constitutes an update of the Environmental Impact Statement. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS CERTIFICATION . • • . i FOREWORD . i:( TABLE OF CONTENTS. • • • • • • • • . ' . iii LIST OF FIGURES. •. t t ._ II t . ix LIST OF TABLES . X LOCATION INDEX OF ITEMS REQUIRED BY 49 CFR PART 266. • • . xii CHAPTER I - INTRODUCTION . ~ . ' . I-1 The Impetus For State Rail Planning • • • • • • • • • • • • • • I-1 Purposes Of The Wisconsin Rail Plan • • • • • • • • • • • • • • I-2 Relationship To The All-Mode Policy Plan. • • • • • • • • • • • I-2 Wisconsin's Transportation Energy Policy. • • • • • • • • • • • I-3 CHAPTER II - RAILROAD PROBLEMS AND ISSUES • • • • • • • • • • . ' . II-1 In troduc tian • • • • • • • • • • , • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • II-1 The Roots of Rail Problems ••••••••••••••••••• II-1 Current Industry-wide Problems ••••• , •• , •••••••• II-2 Specific Wisconsin Problems ••••• , •••••••••••• II-7 The Outlook with Regulatory Reform ••••••••••••••• II-11 CHAPTER III - GOALS, OBJECTIVES, AND POLICIES FOR WISCONSIN RAIL TRANSfORTATION ••••••••••••• . III-1 Introduction • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • , • • • • • • • • • III-1 Goals and Objectives for Rail Transportation in Wisconsin ••• III-2 WisDOT Intermodal Policy Regarding Railroads •••••••••• III-4 WisDOT Policy on Grade Crossing Warning Devices and Surfaces •• III-4 WisDOT Policy on Taxation of Railroads •••• , , •••••• , III-5 WisDOT Policy on Rail Passenger Service •••••••••• • • III-6 WisDOT Policy on Lake Michigan Car Ferry Service ••••••• , III-7 WisDOT Policy on Rail Abandonments ••••••••••••••• III-7 WisDOT Investment Policy for Lines Approved for Abandonment •• III-8 WisDOT Policy on Streamlining the Total Rail System •••••• III-12 WisDOT Policy on Rehabilitation of Rail Properties ••••••• III-12 WisDOT Policy on Subsidization of Rail Service ••••••••• III-13 WisDOT Policy on Su~stitute Service Projects •••••••••• III-14 WisDOT Policy on Acquisition of Abandoned Rail Right of Way •• III-15 CHAPTER IV - THE INSTITUTIONAL STRUCTURE FOR RAILROAD PLANNING AND FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE • • • • • • • • • • • • . .• IV-1 The Regional Rail Reorganization Act of 1973 ••••• , • , •• IV-1 The Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act of 1976 IV-2 Wisconsin Rail Assistance Programs ••••••••••••••• IV-3 iii CHAPTER V - THE EXISTING RAILROAD SYSTEM IN WISCONSIN . V-1 THE DEVELOPMENT OF WISCONSIN'S RAILROADS. V-1 CHARACTERISTICS OF RAILROADS IN WISCONSIN . V-4 Wisconsin's Railroad Companies, •••••••••••• . V-4 Classification Of Lines • • • • • • •. • , • • • • • • • . V-8 Yard Facilities •••••••••••••••••••• . V-10 Weight of Rail • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • . V-10 TOFC And COFC Facilities •••••••••••••••• . V-12 Interchange Facilities ••••••••• . V-12 Rail Service To Military Installations. V-12 High And Wide Load Restrictions •••• . V-17 RAIL FREIGHT FLOW . V-18 Traffic Density • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • . V-18 Wisconsin's Rail Centers •••••••••••••••• . V-21 Commodities Shipped By Rail •••••••••••••• V-23 Origin-Destination Of Rail Freight Shipments • ••••• V-23 Unit Train Operations ••••••••••••••••• • • V-28 LAKE MICHIGAN RAIL FERRY SERVICE. .. V-32 Historical Development Of Rail Ferries ••••••••••• V-32 Present Status Of The Ferries ••••••• , ••••••• V-34 Relationship Of Ferries To The Green Bay and Western Railroad ••••••••••••••••••••• V-36 The Quality Of Ferry Passenger Service •••••• , •••• V-37 RAIL PASSENGER SERVICE. ... • • V-38 Historical Trend •• . • • . V-38 Creation of Amtrak. • • . V-38 Pre-Amtrak Service In Wisconsin . • • V-38 Current Rail Passenger Service In Wisconsin •••••• . V-40 Analysis of Additional Routes ••••••••••••• V-42 CHAPTER VI - RAIL LINES POTENTIALLY SUBJECT TO ABANDONMENT . VI-1 Introduction •••••••••••••••••••••••• VI-1 The System Diagram Maps • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • . VI-1 Nationwide Pending and Prospective Abandonment Status ••• VI-2 Wisconsin Pendi~g and Prospective Abandonment Status •••• . VI-5 Rail Lines Carrying Less Than 3 Million Gross Tons Per Mile . VI-9 CHAPTER VII - ANALYSIS OF LINES SUBJECT TO ABANDONMENT . VII-1 Introduction •••••••••• . VII-1 Line-by-Line Analysis ••••• . VII-1 Disposition Of Lines Included In Earlier Rail Plan Analysis But Dropped From This Update. VII-2 iv CHAPTER VII (Continued) Location Index For Individual Line Analyses Line Number Railroad Termini 2 C&NW Merrillan-Marshfield . • . VII-6 3 C&NW Marshfield-Wausau • . • . • . VII-8 6 C&NW Lake Geneva-Ringwood, Illinois . • . VII-ll 7 C&NW Medary Jct.-Galesville • . • . VII-14 9 C&NW Pulaski-Gillett • . • . VII-16 13 B&FJ Brillion-Forest Jct. • • . • . VII-19 17 MILW Appleton-South Appleton • • . • . • . • •