The excitement is building, and more and more business and public organizations are coming on board to back a return to rail service between the Poconos and New York City. The latest to give their stamp of approval were the Monroe County Commissioners, who approved a resolution to support the route, which would return lost rail service between Scranton and NYC with stops at several Pocono communities along the way.

Also last week, U.S. Rep. Matt Cartwright, D-Pa., and local officials held a news conference in Stroudsburg to lend their support to restore rail service. “We got a big leg up when we passed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which includes $66 billion for the restoration of rail lines,” Cartwright said.

Business and community leaders are tripping over each other in their enthusiasm to show support for this project, which has been going on in one form or the other for decades. This time, however, it is more than a pipe dream, and with federal funding to back the effort and an economic impact study that was an unexpected stunner, Amtrak has taken renewed interest in the project, which has lain dormant, some might even say comatose, for way too long.

This service route is a no-brainer. With the relocation of residents from the New York City metropolitan area and northern New Jersey to the Poconos region, there is a pent-up demand for this service.

Thanks to the passage in 2021 of the $1 trillion infrastructure bill, a pot of money has been authorized that would make this the largest federal investment in passenger rail service since the creation of Amtrak more than 50 years ago.

Chris Barrett, president and CEO of the Pocono Mountains Visitors Bureau, has been getting support from area chambers of commerce and other influential groups. He has sent these along with a petition of support to the offices of Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf and PennDOT Secretary Yassmin Gramian urging their backing for the rail project.

Don’t think for a minute that Amtrak will be pulling into Pocono stations next week. It will take more than a year for Amtrak to complete work on its infrastructure assessment to determine the cost estimate to upgrade the tracks and allow for trains to use them at increased speeds.

The local liaison with Amtrak is the Pennsylvania Northeast Regional Railroad Authority, which will have a significant role in providing engineering data and support to enhance the final Amtrak effort, said association President Lawrence Malski. The regional authority owns the rights-of-way for the Pennsylvania segments of the route, which is being used by freight trains.

As recently as three years ago, Amtrak executives were saying that there was zero chance of reviving passenger service between the two points, because it would involve using rail lines for freight, which is much more profitable than passenger service.

Why the change of heart? Along with the proposed infusion of billions of federal funds through the infrastructure legislation was an economic impact analysis by Amtrak that found that proposed passenger service between Scranton and New York City would generate $87 million in annual economic activity and nearly $3 billion from one-time investments. All of these big numbers caused Amtrak to re-evaluate its once intractable position.

If this all comes about - and mind you, it will still take years until the first train leaves Scranton bound for NYC - the train would go from Scranton to Monroe County points at Tobyhanna, Mount Pocono and East Stroudsburg, then across the Delaware River at the Delaware Water Gap to make stops at Blairstown in Warren County, Dover and Morristown in Morris County, Summit in Union County and Newark in Essex County, all in New Jersey, before arriving at Penn Station. This line also would connect at New York with other Amtrak services throughout the Northeast.

The Scranton to New York City link is just one of nearly 40 new passenger rail proposals in an Amtrak report that would rely on $75 billion in federal funds over a 15-year period.

The economic impact study raised the potential that there is widespread demand for this service, especially from tens of thousands of daily commuters, from those who want to visit the city for a one-day or weekend getaway and dozens of colleges and universities along the corridor, including East Stroudsburg University, the universities and colleges in the Scranton area and those sprinkled throughout New Jersey.

The ambitious proposal also includes two daily round trips between Allentown and New York City, which would give residents in our area easier access to rail service and give them an alternative to trying to negotiate the trip to the Big Apple by motor vehicle, which is always an unpredictable adventure.

By BRUCE FRASSINELLI | tneditor@tnonline.com