Sheboygan’s Mayor has shared more information on the possibility of bringing a passenger rail service to the City of Sheboygan.
Earlier this month, Mayor Ryan Sorenson sat down with a representative from Amtrak to further discuss the work that would have to be done to make that dream a reality.
Mayor Sorenson told us that this was just the latest of a series of talks he’s had on the matter, and that his messaging has stayed consistent.
“Primarily, my conversation is always advocating for Sheboygan first and foremost,” said Mayor Sorenson. “You want to make sure that we’re getting our name out there as a great location to expand rail. Sheboygan already has a great built-in network, if you will, of potential riders.”
He also laid out another reason why he feels extending the Amtrak rail to Sheboygan makes a lot of sense.
“You also have it from a tourism standpoint. A greater percentage of our tourism comes from the Chicagoland area. This makes connectivity so much easier, affordable, and accessible for our community to tap into that region to compound with tourism,” the Mayor explained.
After that meeting, Mayor Sorenson put out a statement that ended by stating that in order to make this happen, it would have to be a community-wide effort.
He shared with us how he envisions that group work getting accomplished.
“Its residents and citizens just reaching out to their federal representatives and advocating for it. Its community leaders and business leaders reaching out to Amtrak and their federal representatives as well,” Mayor Sorenson told us. “It needs to be a chorus of Sheboyganites singing the same song about their support and their willingness to have train access.”
To close, Mayor Sorenson explained that right now, Sheboygan is placed directly on a rail corridor; it would have to be converted from freight to passenger rail, while also noting that this is going to have to be a multi-year strategy and partnership between the City, the region, the State, and federal agencies.
