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A regional study exploring how to better connect Centre County to passenger rail options is now looking for public input to help shape its final recommendations.
The study, which began in October 2025 and is being led by the Centre County Metropolitan Planning Organization, identified four options for potentially connecting State College and surrounding communities to Amtrak and the broader passenger rail network.
With the draft study complete, the next phase is gathering community input through a public comment period that is open until Aug. 17, and seeks to understand which options the public prefers, the urgency for these services and other priorities to consider, said Greg Kausch, Centre Region Council of Governments’ senior transportation planner.
“We’re hoping to get some reaction, some impressions from our local community and continue to get a better sense of what local community preferences might be,” Kausch said.
There will also be two open house sessions on Aug. 4, from 3 to 4:30 p.m. and from 6 to 7:30 p.m, both at the Centre Region Council of Governments (COG) Building, that will present the study, provide insights on the process, answer questions and gather recommendations.
The study has a spending cap of $60,000, with $48,000 provided by the Federal Highway Administration. The remaining $12,000 was provided by a local county match.
Four ways to increase passenger rail connectivity
The study evaluated several options for improving connections between State College and the region’s rail network, including expanded intercity bus service to Harrisburg, an Amtrak connector bus, a rail shuttle linking Bellefonte and State College with the Tyrone station, and direct passenger rail service to State College. It compared each option’s capital and operating costs, accessibility and service levels, implementation timeline and overall feasibility.
Kausch said the quickest and most affordable options are the intercity bus and Amtrak connector, which can potentially “get a foot in the door” with the project and test what the demand might be for future rail services.
“Maybe those end up being the ultimate solutions. Maybe those end up being interim steps while we look a little bit more at some of our longer-term options,” he said.
The rail-based options would require more than $50 million in upfront capital investment, with annual operating costs ranging between $6 million to $20 million. Kausch said the study does not rule out those options, but they would require significant funding from multiple levels of government, along with strong public support, to become a reality.
It would also require coordination and support from multiple local and state transportation partners, particularly the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, Amtrak and freight rail operators, Kausch said.
“We need them to see that this is a market worth serving, that it’s a market worth modifying their operations for, before that investment is even considered, much less made,” he said.
A committee of key stakeholders has been steering the project and providing feedback, Kausch said, composed of Amtrak representatives, local transportation providers (CATA, Altoona Metro Station, Centre County Office of Transportation), the SEDA-COG Joint Rail Authority and PennDOT.
A survey conducted in February to gather local input and recommendations helped shape the four alternatives that prioritize State College connectivity with larger stations in Harrisburg and Altoona due to their optimal station functions instead of local stations in Lewistown, Tyrone and Huntingdon, Kausch said.
“Not all of these rail stations have dedicated staff to provide ticketing services, assist with baggage, things like that. So we began to see that as an issue or an element of service that was important to our community members,” he said.
Other challenges for implementing rail services include securing safety and right of way for vehicles to operate and purchasing land to provide dedicated facilities, Kausch said.
He added that there are existing rail lines around State College near the Nittany Mall area that extend toward Bellefonte and Milesburg area and turn toward Tyrone, which are currently used for freight purposes and would need to be evaluated for whether they meet passenger safety standards and can accommodate other aspects of the project.
After the public comment period closes in August, the committee plans to present a final report to the Centre County Metropolitan Planning Organization Coordinating Committee by the end of September.
Draft study findings and recommendations are available at www.crcog.net/transportationstudies. Public comments will be accepted through Aug. 17 and can be submitted through a QR code on the study’s website, by email to Greg Kausch at [email protected] or in person at one of the open house sessions.
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