All Aboard! Amplifying Community Voices Along the Regional Rail Corridor
Charting the future of rail travel across our region – This month’s blog features a new community engagement report led by our project partners at Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority (BSPRA), capturing community perspectives towards passenger rail service on Montana’s northern tier.
We’re also excited to share that our work plan under the USDOT sponsored Regional Infrastructure Accelerator (RIA) program has been officially extended through March 2027. Plus - save the date for the Greater Northwest Rail Summit, hosted with BSPRA on August 27 in Helena, Montana.
Continue reading to learn more about how we’re advancing regional transportation connectivity over the next year.
What We Heard Along Montana’s Northern Corridor: Community Input on Passenger Rail
Content provided by BSPRA
In late 2025, Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority (BSPRA), with support from Trillium Cooperative, conducted public outreach along Montana’s northern communities served by the Amtrak Empire Builder corridor. The goal was straightforward: listen to residents, local leaders and tribal communities about passenger rail priorities and what would make service more usable for everyday needs.
Montana’s diverse geography makes transportation mobility particularly important for communities across the state. Community members underscored that reliability and end-to-end connectivity are what turn rail from an idea into something people can actually use.
Across meetings and survey feedback, several themes were consistent. Participants emphasized the importance of reliable service and end-to-end connectivity, including practical last-mile gaps that can make it difficult to complete a trip once someone arrives at a station. Participants also raised affordability and accessibility issues that shape whether rail is a realistic option for rural communities and people with limited transportation options.
In the context of BSPRA’s project as part of the PNWER RIA program, these findings point to a strategic focus on improved coordination, on-time performance and communication with freight operations and regional transit partners, and investments that enhance economic vitality while making passenger rail a dependable and predictable option for rural residents, seniors, people with disabilities and those without access to private vehicles.
“Hearing directly from Montanans is a critical component of delivering rail corridors that are built for the communities they serve.
This work, in partnership with BSPRA, advances our vision of high-performance rail and helps pave the way for strategic investments that improve passenger and freight mobility.”
Public comments and suggestions will be carried forward as planning continues, with thanks to all who participated in the outreach project and provided essential feedback on transportation needs.
This outreach was conducted in partnership with PNWER as part of work supported by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Build America Bureau under the Regional Infrastructure Accelerator (RIA) program.
Read the full report here or with the link below.
Extending Our Impact
The PNWER Build Northwest Accelerator is a one-of-a-kind convener and resource for communities, states, jurisdictions and tribal nations working to improve transportation infrastructure throughout the Pacific Northwest. Marking two years for our current RIA program, PNWER has been granted a no-cost, one-year extension of our work plan – enabling us to continue the technical assistance and education we’ve been delivering since 2021.
Our project portfolio spans multimodal projects serving rail, highway, port and passenger mobility networks across five states. By moving these projects forward together, we’re helping to realize a more resilient transportation system for our region’s businesses and communities. This work fits into a four-piece puzzle:
Educate: Providing easy-to-understand learning modules on our region’s transportation technologies, financing tools and funding opportunities through programs across the U.S. Department of Transportation’s operating agencies. Check out a recording of our innovative financing webinar here.
Assist: Delivering direct, no-cost technical assistance to help project sponsors use innovative tools to fund their projects faster. We partner with local organizations to conduct on-the-ground research and assistance.
Convene: Bringing public and private sector partners together to develop multimodal investment strategies for freight mobility, supply chain optimization and passenger mobility.
Integrate: Promoting integrated transportation and energy corridor planning to support future-forward supply chains.
What’s Next?
We have a myriad of exciting things on the horizon. To name a few:
PNWER is hosting a delegation of Washington policymakers, port commissioners and maritime/freight leaders in Alaska to learn more about port resilience and our shared supply chains.
We’re looking to host an innovative financing workshop in Idaho with our partners at Local Highway Technical Assistance Council. More details will be shared as the event comes together.
It’s full steam ahead in Montana, where the Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority is hosting its annual conference this August 25-26. The PNWER RIA is joining BSPRA as a co-host of the Greater Northwest Rail Summit on August 27.
We’re putting the finishing touches on a new readiness analysis tool to help Northwest project sponsors prepare and gather the necessary information to enter the federal financing pipeline.
Upcoming Events
Greater Northwest Rail Summit & BSPRA Annual Conference | August 25-27, 2026
Save the date for the Greater Northwest Rail Summit, held in conjunction with the Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority’s Annual Conference, August 25–27, 2026, in Helena, Montana.
This three-day gathering will convene leaders and stakeholders from across the rail industry, government, manufacturing, tourism, and community development sectors for timely discussions on the future of passenger and freight rail in Montana and across the Greater Northwest.
Learn more athttps://bigskyrailmt.gov/2026-gnwrs-bspra-annual-meeting.
Request for Information: ROUTES Initiative
FYI — rural or tribal project sponsors in the PNWER region:
The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Rural Opportunities to Use Transportation for Economic Success (ROUTES) Initiative requests public inputon unmet transportation infrastructure needs in rural communities, barriers that rural communities face in addressing those needs, and opportunities for ROUTES and the DOT to improve its services and technical assistance to support rural stakeholders and American families.
Comments are due on Friday, April 24, 2026.
Keep in touch!
We’re grateful to our subrecipients, consultants, stakeholder and legislative partners for their continued collaboration on this important project. Stay up to date with us by signing up for our newsletter and following along on LinkedIn.
