The Schuylkill River Passenger Rail Authority has been accepted into a federal program that will provide a critical boost to the effort to restore train service between Reading and Philadelphia.
The project has been accepted into the Corridor Identification and Development Program, U.S. Sen. John Fetterman and U.S. Reps. Chrissy Houlahan and Madeleine Dean announced Tuesday afternoon. The line would include stops in Reading, Pottstown and Phoenixville.
Authority members have said the federal funding is a once-in-a-generation opportunity that can help make the costly project financially feasible. Discussions about restoring service, which ended in 1983, have been going on for the past two decades.
With its acceptance into the program, the authority will receive $500,000 to develop the scope and costs of completing a service plan that will examine ridership and revenue forecasts, capital programming and an operational analysis. The selection also means the project will be eligible for more federal grants down the line.
Fetterman said in a statement that he believes having more trains and public transportation options is good for the commonwealth, and that this project would go a long way toward revitalizing communities along the route.
“I’m extremely honored and excited to announce this important grant funding for the passenger rail proposal between Reading and Philadelphia,” he said. “This is a huge step towards finally bringing passenger rail back to the Schuylkill River valley.”
Dean, a Democrat who represents parts of Montgomery and Berks counties, said in a statement that expanding the railway system is one of the best ways to spur growth and create economic opportunities for Pennsylvanians.
“Whether passengers use these new rail lines for their daily commute or for leisure, increased access to Philadelphia and New York — especially for the more rural areas of our community like Reading, Pottstown and Phoenixville — is an investment in the people and communities that need it most,” she said.
Houlahan, a Democrat who represents all of Chester County and part of Berks, said this is a huge victory for the communities she represents.
“During my five years in office, improving access to our passenger rail system has been a top priority,” she said. “From conversations with so many of my constituents, I know what this means to our local economy and well-being.”
Houlahan pointed out that the authority got a jump on developing a service plan thanks to $750,000 in federal funding she requested last year. That money was part of a program that allows members of Congress to request money to support community projects.
But the service plan is just the first step in what is likely to be a long process.
Once the plan is complete, the next step will be the preliminary engineering phase, which will show the authority whether the project is feasible. If it is, it will move to the implementation phase, which includes final design and starting the service.
Berks, Chester and Montgomery counties formed the Schuylkill River Passenger Rail Authority in 2022 to establish the groundwork for the proposed plan to restore passenger rail service between Reading and Philadelphia. Members of the authority have said this latest attempt to restore service is different from previous attempts, mostly due to the cooperation between the three counties that the service would pass through.
The authority could not immediately be reached for comment.
Along with the proposed Reading to Philadelphia line, another Pennsylvania rail project was accepted into the federal program Tuesday. The proposed plan to reestablish direct passenger rail service between Scranton and New York, with stops in the Poconos, will also receive funding as part of the program.
