Governors from across the Midwest are coordinating their efforts to bring commuter rail improvements to the region and it's great to see. Having already joined Sen. Dick Durbin in a public pitch for stimulus funds set aside for high speed rail development, Gov. Pat Quinn this week signed a letter to U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood touting the benefits of building such a network in the region and requesting $3.5 billion worth of grant money. Other signatories included Mayor Daley and the governors of Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, and Wisconsin. From the letter:

President Obama’s vision of making high-speed rail a part of our nation’s future transportation network holds great promise. We recognize that a high-speed rail network has the potential to reduce highway and airway congestion, greenhouse gas emissions, and the nation’s dependence on foreign oil. We are encouraged by the $8 billion down payment on this initiative made in ARRA, and we share President Obama’s desire that real economic progress be made through infrastructure investment.

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If approved, the request would fund upgrades to the "Phase I” corridors as outlined in the 2004 Midwest Regional Rail Initiative Executive Report, which include routes from Chicago to Milwaukee/Madison, St. Louis, and Detroit (click map above for larger version).

While it's unlikely that the governors will receive the total amount they are seeking -- after all, the requests would add up to 43 percent of the $8 billion allocated nationwide -- the cooperation they are showing is a great sign of progress. The Transport Politic has more:

[I]t’s surprising and relieving to see so much regional cooperation between states in prioritizing corridors and in working for a common objective. To see the Governor of Ohio suggest that the first phase of expenditures in the Midwest not include a project in his state is more than surprising, and suggests that planning for a national network does not have to be done by the federal government alone if states are willing and able to make accords with one another.

[H/T Streetsblog]