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The Kentucky - Indiana Rail Advocates (KIRA)

Tue, 08/19/2008 - 08:10 — Dave Morse

The Kentucky - Indiana Rail Advocates is, like CART, a citizen advocacy group for rail in the region around Louisville. Their most active member, John Owen, has been the mastermind & prime force behind the Paducah & Louisiville inspection train project. 

In the 1990s, KIRA enjoyed life as the Rail Task Force, commissioned by the city of Louisville to investigate passenger rail. Their crowning achievement came around 2004 when AMTRAK started service to Louisville Union Station. When AMTRAK pulled out, the group went dormant. However, last week they held their first meeting of 2008. I am hoping they once again become a force in Louisville's transportation activism community!

 

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Wed, 08/20/2008 - 09:08 — Anonymous

KIRA History

 

The founding members of CART  Owen Hardy, Bill Daken and Ethel White were all members of the Rail Task Force. So our groups share a common thread.
Many members of the Rail Task Force were members of an even older group The Kentucky Association Of Railroad Passengers under the leadership of Ralze Dore and Baynard ( Larry ) Wright carried the torch from the pre - Amtrak days in the 1960's when efforts were underway to Save The Trains .In early years  of Amtrak advocating the need for the  The Floridian - Chicago Louisville- Miami train which operated until Oct 1979, Continued in the 1980's to restore the  Washington DC - Chicago Amtrak train the Cardinal when it was briefly discontinued by Amtrak for six months working with Senators from KY , Ohio and West Virginia
In its incarnation as the railroad task force under the Board of Aldermen the rail task force worked with every railroad in the region on many issues including CSX< Norfolk Southern,  Paducah and Louisville, Louisville and Indiana, Southern Indiana Railway, RJ Corman and Amtrak.
Three members have served as Regional Directors for the National Association Of Railroad Passengers  Don Maxwell from Ashland, KY, John Owen from Louisville, and Nick Noe from Indianapolis, IN .
Under the leadership of Charlie Castner (former PR man for the Louisville and Nashville Railroad and Seaboard System) the task force was and continues to be well respected by many folks in federal, state and local governments including Mayor Jerry Abramson and Mayor David Armstrong, other members of the cabinet under the old City of Louisville.  And we have worked directly with KIPDA, Kentucky and Indiana DOT, TARC, the Midwest High Speed Rail Association. For many years we met at Greater Louisville Inc. and had a good relationship there but later moved our meetings to Louisville Union Station
KIRA mission continues today as always to offer transportation solutions that are as relevant today as they were some 40- 70 years ago when many of our members some now deceased like George Yater and Jim Calvert took up the torch, when the interurban and streetcars disappeared in the late 1930’s and 1940’s.
Many of our members have hands on experience in rail or transportation industries.