St. Paul – Citing the huge economic impact and job creation potential, leaders of the Minnesota AFL-CIO sent an open letter to Wisconsin Governor-elect Scott Walker urging him to reconsider his plans to refuse federal dollars for high speed rail.
The section between Madison and Milwaukee would be part of a larger regional high speed rail system linking Minneapolis/St. Paul and Chicago.
In the letter, Minnesota AFL-CIO President Shar Knutson and Secretary-Treasurer Steve Hunter reminded Walker that refusing these funds won’t just hurt Wisconsin, but the entire Midwest.
“The larger Midwest high speed rail initiative would put tens of thousands of more people back to work, and make the upper Midwest an even more lucrative place to do business. If Wisconsin says no to this section of the line, it is likely Minnesota will not see any rail dollars in the future,” they wrote.
Minnesota’s incoming Governor Mark Dayton, who has gone on record as a strong supporter of the Midwest high speed rail plan, was copied on the letter. Knutson added that it is critical for Minnesota, Wisconsin, and other states in the region to work together in order to create jobs and strengthen the economy.
The federal government is going to invest this money in rail one way or another,” said Knutson. “Turning down this money means jobs for another region instead of the upper Midwest.”