Source Notes 23

(Mineta Transportation Institute, October 2005)

Summary:

The Mineta Transportation Institute out of San Jose State University published an image detailing a possible rail network in the Ohio and Lake Erie region.  This source provides a visual for the northern Midwest region, which is one of the corridors closest to receiving federal funds for high-speed rail.

Topic:

High-Speed Rail Policy

Category:

Academic

What is it?

a map

Publication Information:

The name of the publication is the Mineta Transportation Institute.  The map was posted in October 2005 in San Jose.

Authors:

Allison Cerreno, Daniel Evans, and Howard Permut

Location:

http://transweb.sjsu.edu/mtiportal/research/publications/documents/deCerreno/hsr_de%20cerreno.htm#pgfId-1018292

Accessed:

February 28, 2009

Support:

Ohio Rail Transportation Authority, a government transportation agency in Ohio

Ohio Department of Transportation Rail Division, a rail agency in Ohio

Ohio High-Speed Rail Authority, a rail association in Ohio

Ohio Rail Development Commission, a rail commission established by the Ohio State Legislature in 1994

Federal Highway Administration, a national transportation agency

Michigan Department of Transportation, the transportation department of Michigan

The Ohio Rail Transportation Authority researched plans for passenger rail to be presented to Ohio voters.  The Ohio Department of Transportation took over ORTA’s responsibilities in 1983.  The Ohio High-Speed Rail Authority was created in 1985 to help develop a statewide high-speed rail system.  The Ohio Rail Development Commission was created in 1994 to address issues with establishing additional statewide passenger and freight rail, and lobbied for the establishment of a corridor between Cleveland, Cincinnati, and Columbus that would be connected to a Chicago hub.  They also requested federal funds in 2001 to research a Detroit-Pittsburg corridor that would connect to a Cleveland hub.  Along with ODOT, the Federal Highway Administration granted the funds to the Ohio Rail Development Commission.  The Michigan Department of Transportation also helped with the study of the Cleveland hub connections.

Audience and Agenda:

The Mineta Transportation Institute’s site has no listed number of viewers.  The main visitors to its website are other academics looking for information on national intermodal surface transportation issues.  They expect professional studies, articles, and releases with in-depth research into various transportation issues.

The Mineta Research Institute was founded by Congress in 1991.  It is funded by Congress through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Research and Innovative Technology Administration, which channels funding through the California Department of Transportation.  It is trying to address an audience of academics involved in researching alternative modes of high-speed ground transportation.  It is trying to affect high-speed transportation policy through its research.

Usefulness:

This source is in a regional context, focusing on the Ohio area.  The Ohio corridor is part of the Chicago Hub Network, which is the largest designated corridor in the country.

The document was created by the Mineta Research Institute to detail the routes of a possible rail network in the Ohio and Lake Erie region.  The most populous regions will recieve the most high-speed rail funds.

The report is trying to address an audience interested in affecting policies on developing alternative modes of intermodal high-speed ground transportation, including high-speed rail.  This is the kind of source that can affect a major policymaker’s stance on high-speed rail.

This source leaves out any funding information, since it focuses on research of possible routes and not the reality of paying for them.  The research will always come first in any project, so this source is a good start.

Focusing on the northern Midwest region, this source relates to Source Notes 5, Source Notes 11, Source Notes 17, and Source Notes 19.  Being an image, this source relates to Source Notes 26, Source Notes 20, Source Notes 17, and Source Notes 24.

Works Cited:

Mineta Transportation Institute.  <http://transweb.sjsu.edu/>

“About Us.”  Mineta Transportation Institute.  <http://www.transweb.sjsu.edu/MTIportal/about/index.html>

“Mineta Transportation Institute.”  Wikipedia.  <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mineta_Transportation_Institute>

“High-Speed Rail Projects In The United States: Identifying Elements For Success.”  Mineta Transportation Institute.  <http://transweb.sjsu.edu/mtiportal/research/publications/documents/deCerreno/HSR_de%20Cerreno.htm>

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Filed under: Academic Research