The cost of bringing passenger rail service to College Station will likely exceed $1.1 billion.
A firm hired by TxDOT, HNTB, presented its findings to the Bryan/College Station Metropolitan Planning Organization on Wednesday showing the minimum cost to build passenger rail service from Austin to Houston would be $9.7 million.
However, to include a stop in College Station, the price would increase by an average of $206 million. The three options discussed would bring the rail service through College Station via Hempstead, Giddings or Brenham.
The Giddings route would cost the least at $1.15 billion, with the Brenham route being the most expensive at $1.21 billion.
The direct line would have a travel time of 2 hours and 45 minutes. With the College Station stop, time would be increased by an average of 35 minutes. Traveling from College Station to Houston would take just under two hours and travel time from College Station to Austin would be an hour and 45 minutes.
If built, the passenger rail service would start with two round trips with morning departure and evening return daily between Austin and Houston. Weekday trip times would accommodate business travel and weekend trip times would accommodate leisure travel including sporting events.
Joe Guerra, College Station Transportation Planning Coordinator, said the passenger rail service would be welcomed by the city and could be very beneficial to residents who work in Houston or Austin.
WTAW’s Chelsea Reber visits with Joe Guerra