TX: Longtime rail service connecting Texas to Oklahoma could end soon

This year, the Texas legislature is busy doing everything from funding school vouchers to attempting to rid bookstores of texts politicians deem "obscene." Amid this flurry of legislation, Texas lawmakers also may be responsible for cutting a vital connection between the state and its neighbors to the north.

Rail travel supporters are worried that the future of Amtrak's Heartland Flyer service is in jeopardy. That's because the Texas Legislature snatched annual funding for the daily Oklahoma City-to- Fort Worth train route from the upcoming state $337 budget, which was approved earlier in April. Typically, according to Texas Rail Advocates, the state chips in around $2.5 million annually for the service run by the national passenger railroad company. This year, according to a report by KOCO in Oklahoma City, the Lone Star State would need to pay about $3.5 million for the Heartland Flyer to operate.

"The Heartland Flyer, in operation since 1999, carried more than 80,000 passengers last year and is in jeopardy of being discontinued as early as June due to lack of funding," read a post by Texas Rail Advocates in late April. "It would mean more than 50,000 vehicles a year back on Interstate 35 and a loss of sales tax revenue, hotel and restaurant traffic and well as tourist dollars if the train goes away."

Oklahoma pays $4.5 million annually, more than half of the cost for the service. But the cost for Amtrak to operate the service has increased over the last few years, thus the boost in what Texas has to pony up. Heartland Flyer ridership has also gone up, with annual passenger numbers increasing by nearly 15 percent between 2019 and '24, according to a report by the nonprofit Fort Worth Report.

Meanwhile, officials in Kansas are hoping to restore the line that sends the Heartland Flyer north from Oklahoma City to Newton, Kansas. The project would cost up to $573 million, according to a report in February.

One location that would be on the route running from Oklahoma City to Newton is Ponca City, Oklahoma. Reacting to the possibility of the Heartland Flyer's end, Ponca City Mayor Kelsey Wagner told local news website Kay News Cow that she was "disappointed to learn of the Texas Legislature's" actions.

"We are moving forward, and we call on our state and federal partners to stand with communities like ours that believe in connecting rural Oklahoma to the nation," Wagner said. "We respectfully urge the legislators in Texas to carefully consider the negative economic impact this will have on Texas and Oklahoma, and we urge you to find a way to preserve this funding."

The fate of the Heartland Flyer could be sealed within two months, as June 30 marks the deadline for funds to be approved. After that, the Heartland Flyer could run no more, at least between Oklahoma City and Fort Worth.

Back in January, the North Texas-based Regional Transportation Council put $100,000 of toll revenue funds toward the Heartland Flyer because the service was down $72,000 in fiscal year 2024. The move temporarily saved the Heartland Flyer.

"This action ensures that the Amtrak Heartland Flyer passenger service will not experience any disruptions," read a Department of Transportation report in January, according to the Fort Worth Report.

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