Quote Originally Posted by shawnw View Post
Neither mayor can _make_ the railroads grant access to their rail to get to the stations, no matter how much they want it.
Perhaps not the mayors, but the state can - at minimum for the Tulsa area. When BNSF sold the Sooner Sub to ODOT back in the late 90's, BNSF granted a 99-year passenger rights easement on the Creek Sub to get any potential passenger trains from the end of the Sooner Sub in Sapulpa through Cherokee Yard into downtown Tulsa. This easement allows for up to two passenger trains daily in each direction. Additional capacity is likely possible but would have to be negotiated with BNSF.

In OKC, Union Pacific owns the track from the AOK/SLWC junction near NE 4th and Sunnylane west through Harter Yard, through the rail corridor separating Bricktown from Deep Deuce, to the BNSF viaduct. In the past, UP was receptive to the idea of making access to Santa Fe Station possible for eastern trains, or at least working on a feasibility study for such with the City of OKC. I know the city authorized up to $50,000 for this study to be paid to UP back in 2015, but after Iowa Pacific began to self-destruct and put the Eastern Flyer on hold, I believe the City put a hold on that study as well. I certainly haven't heard of any findings from that.