In response to public interest, the Minnesota Department of Transportation extended the comment period to Aug. 22 on a plan for passenger rail service between the Twin Cities and Rochester. MnDOT is preparing a Tier I Environmental Impact Statement in cooperation with the Federal Railroad Administration and the Olmsted County Regional Railroad Authority to evaluate passenger rail alternatives for the Rochester-Twin Cities Rail Corridor Investment Plan, also known as the Zip Rail. The impact statement is in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969.

As part of the Tier I EIS, an environmental scoping booklet and draft scoping decision document were prepared and are available for public review and comment. The scoping booklet describes the purpose and need for development of high-speed passenger rail service between Rochester and the Twin Cities and also provides information on alternatives that will be carried into the Tier 1 EIS.

The Zip Rail study area includes an approximately 100-mile corridor between Rochester and the Twin Cities. The area includes Dakota, Dodge, Goodhue, Hennepin, Olmsted, Ramsey and Rice counties and various end points in the Twin Cities and Rochester area. Currently, there is not a continuous existing railroad connection between the Twin Cities and Rochester, so many of the potential corridors would create new transportation routes.