MILWAUKEE, Wis. (WTAQ) - U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan joined state and local leaders in Milwaukee Thursday, in celebrating the new high-speed rail service. The state is getting $823 million in federal stimulus to start a new line from Milwaukee to Madison in 2013, and to speed up the current Amtrak trains from Milwaukee to Chicago. Also, a feasibility study will be done to determine a future route from Madison to the Twin Cities. Governor Jim Doyle calls the Milwaukee to Madison line revolutionary. Madison Mayor Dave Cieslewicz says it will help spur economic development. It will start at 79 miles an hour, and it will take a few years to make the necessary track improvements to ramp the speed up to 110.

The federal money will cover the initial construction and equipment, and it will be up to the state to keep the trains going after that. By 2022, the DOT figures the state’s subsidy will grow to $28 million. State Senate Republican Glenn Grothman of West Bend calls it a permanent waste of money to subsidize, “the handful of people who will use the train.” 1.2 million riders are expected the first year. Bill Richardson of the Dane County Republican Party calls the high-speed service a step backward, saying it’s like offering a “telegraph instead of an IPhone.” And he said it would be much cheaper for a family to drive from Madison to Milwaukee. Roundtrip fares are expected to run from $40 to $66.