In 1857, the Milwaukee & Mississippi Railroad was the first rail to operate in Southwestern Wisconsin. By 1861, the region had 92 miles of track. Forty years later, trackage had expanded to 459 miles in the region. The railroads continued to expand between 1870 and 1900, while public investment in roads languished because the state's Constitution banned funding for internal improvements. By the 1970s rail industry bankruptcies and line abandonment threatened the future of rail service.
SWWRPC's 1977 Inventory of Transportation Systems in Southwestern Wisconsin challenged this seemingly inevitable decline and the Commission worked with its member counties and legislative delegation to ensure that freight rail service was maintained, where feasible, and that the corridor right-of-way was preserved for future use.
Wisconsin's Rail Transit Commissions, made of appointed representatives from participating counties are created by state statute to oversee the rail Right-of-Ways. Today, SWWRPC serves as Administrator for the three Rail Transit Commissions of our Region:
- Pecatonica Rail Transit Commission (PRTC)
- South Central Wisconsin Rail Transit Commission (SCWRTC)
- Wisconsin River Rail Transit Commission (WRRTC)
Freight Rail Resources
- The privately-owned regional Wisconsin & Southern Railroad (WSOR) operates on 600 miles of publicly-owned track in southern Wisconsin.
- The Class I Burlington Northern Sante Fe railroad follows the Mississippi River through western Grant County.
- WisDOT's Freight Railroad Preservation Program (FRPP) grants funds to purchase abandoned rail lines and rehabilitate publicly-owned rail infrastructure.
- WisDOT's Freight Rail Infrastructure Improvement Program (FRIIP) makes loans for rail projects that connect an industry to the national railroad system and make improvements to enhance transportation efficiency, safety, and intermodal freight movement; accomplish line rehabilitation; and develop the economy.
Rail Safety
- Federal Railroad Administration
- Operation Lifesaver
- Wisconsin's Office of the Commissioner of Railroads