On May 22, the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee approved the BUILD America 250 Act following a lengthy markup session. While the bill includes passenger rail investments, reforms, and safety programs, passenger rail advocates continue raising concerns about the absence of guaranteed rail funding included under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

Alongside passenger rail advocates across the country, we are urging Congress to preserve dedicated federal funding for rail programs as lawmakers continue work on the next long-term transportation bill.

A newly released proposal in the U.S. House, known as the BUILD America 250 Act, includes several positive rail policies and program reforms. However, many passenger rail advocates believe the bill falls short in one critical area.

It does not guarantee rail funding.

That distinction matters more than it may sound.

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill provided $66.3 billion in dedicated passenger rail funding, marking the largest federal rail investment in modern U.S. history. That predictable funding helped move rail projects from long-term concepts into active planning and development across the country.

Over the past five years, communities across the U.S. have seen real momentum build around passenger rail expansion and modernization.

That investment helped:

• Advance hundreds of rail-related projects nationwide

• Expand passenger rail corridor planning

• Support American rail manufacturing jobs

• Strengthen partnerships between states and the federal government

• Move proposed new routes closer to implementation

We have seen that momentum firsthand here in Ohio, where proposed passenger rail corridors continue advancing through the Federal Railroad Administration’s Corridor Identification and Development Program. Advocates say that kind of progress only happens when states and agencies can plan with confidence and know funding will still exist years down the road.

What’s Different About This New Bill?

The BUILD America 250 Act still authorizes federal rail funding over the next five years. The concern is that, unlike the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the money would not be guaranteed.

Instead, passenger rail programs would depend on the annual appropriations process in Congress.

For transportation advocates, that creates uncertainty at exactly the moment many rail projects are beginning to gain traction. Passenger rail development is not something that happens in a single budget cycle. Projects often take years of coordination, engineering, environmental review, and partnership building before construction can even begin.

We are concerned that uncertain funding could:

• Slow or stall corridor development

• Make long-term planning more difficult

• Discourage state and local investment

• Complicate multi-state partnerships

• Reduce confidence in future project delivery

  
  

For states like Ohio, where multiple passenger rail corridors continue advancing through federal planning programs, the outcome of this debate could have long-term regional impacts.

The Proposal Does Include Positive Rail Policies

Even many passenger rail advocates raising concerns about the funding structure acknowledge that the bill contains several policies that could benefit passenger rail development and operations.

Many of the proposed reforms focus on improving program flexibility, expanding eligibility for grants, and strengthening oversight and transparency. During committee markup, lawmakers also debated amendments related to rail funding eligibility, transparency, and infrastructure project delivery.

The bill would:

• Expand eligibility for rail infrastructure and safety grants

• Support railroad crossing safety improvements

• Allow funding for new or restored passenger rail service

• Improve transparency and accountability measures for Amtrak

• Support shared passenger rail equipment pools

• Continue corridor planning and development programs

• Create emergency rail relief funding after disasters

As outlined in the Rail Passengers Association’s Part 1 analysis, many of these policy improvements are meaningful. However, policy alone cannot replace reliable investment.

In other words, better programs only matter if there is enough funding available for communities to actually use them.

Why This Matters Beyond Train Riders

Passenger rail investment impacts far more than the people riding the trains.

Rail infrastructure projects support manufacturing, construction, engineering, tourism, and economic development in communities across the country. In many regions, passenger rail is also tied directly to workforce mobility, downtown access, and regional connectivity.

We often talk about passenger rail as transportation infrastructure, but it is also economic infrastructure. Investments in rail create ripple effects that extend well beyond the stations and tracks themselves.

Passenger rail investment supports:

• Manufacturing and supply chain jobs

• Construction and infrastructure work

• Regional economic development

• Tourism and downtown business activity

• Transportation access for urban and rural communities

• Long-term mobility and connectivity planning

According to industry data cited by advocates, the passenger rail supply chain supports more than 330,000 American jobs and generates billions in economic activity nationwide.

What Happens Next

Congress is now entering the transportation reauthorization process, and negotiations over the final bill are expected to continue in the months ahead.

We are encouraging passenger rail supporters across Ohio to contact federal lawmakers and voice support for preserving guaranteed passenger rail funding in the final legislation through the Rail Passengers Association advocacy campaign.

For readers interested in a deeper dive into the legislation, Rail Passengers Association has published both a funding-focused analysis of the bill and a separate analysis covering Amtrak reforms, passenger rail policy provisions, and committee updates following markup.

Now is the time for passenger rail supporters to make their voices heard.