Laserfiche WebLink
<br />. <br /> <br />MONDAY, FEBRUARY 15 · 1999 <br /> <br />* STAR TRIBUNE · PAGE B3 <br /> <br />,J$.t, <br /> <br />INSIDE talk <br /> <br />News, information and observations from the <br />. halls of gooernment and the campaign trail <br /> <br /> <br />. ..... ...... .... ..... ....... .......0" .... II..".... ..." ..J< c.. 01 ..."'.. .oO.".. <br /> <br />Looking down the line <br />with commuter-rail plan <br /> <br />. <br /> <br /> <br />Elwyn Tinklenberg, the new governor's new <br />commissioner of transportation, showed his <br />political savvy last week when he altered a two- <br />year study on the feasibility of using freight rail <br />tracks to carry Twin Cities commuter trains.. <br />The study proposed an initial line running <br />from Minneapolis to the city of Ramsey in <br />Anoka County. <br />On the job a couple of weeks, Tinklenberg <br />reviewed the study before it was submitted to <br />the Legislature and extended the line a few miles <br />northwest to Elk River in Sherburne County. In a <br />cover letter to key legislators, Tinklenberg <br />explained that it made sense to extend the line to <br />Elk River, where it would meet two major roadways, Hwys. 169 and 10. <br />But there's another reason, the commissioner told a reporter. Elk <br />River is in the Eighth Congressional District, the home turf of U.S. <br />Rep. Jim Oberstar, a Democrat and a major player in transportation <br />policy and funding. <br />- Robert Whereatt <br /> <br />Elwyn TInklenberg: <br />Wheels are turning. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />. <br />