Columbus, Ohio is eyeing the $11 Billion earmarked for passenger rail in the stimulus bill and busy planning a line that would connect Cincinnati, Columbus and Cleveland as soon as 2010. Columbus is currently the largest city in the country without passenger rail.

The service, which will simplify the travel process and greatly reduce travel time and costs, is also expected to bring millions to the tourism industry. Stu Nicholson, with the Ohio Rail Development Commission, estimates that the new line could bring “about 800 million dollars a year” through increases in tourism alone.

Infrastructure improvements like this are sure-fire ways to create jobs and give a leg-up to the midwestern economy. The mayor of Columbus, Michael Coleman, added, “Those cities that don’t focus in on alternative forms of transportation are those cities that will fall behind.”

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