Lawmakers propose study bill on what it would take to build regional rail systems
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada rendering of a proposed light rail along Maryland Parkway. In 2019 the RTC opted to enhance bus lanes instead.
Reno Assemblymember Selena La Rue Hatch brought forward legislation on Tuesday she hoped would be the first step to potentially bring a regional rail system to Southern and Northern Nevada.
Assembly Bill 256, heard Tuesday at the Assembly Committee on Legislative Operations and Elections, would create a Regional Rail Transit Advisory Working Group to assess the need for mass transit via rail in the state's largest metro areas, as well as potential funding sources for such a system.
The group would submit legislative recommendations for the 2027 Legislative Session.
'A fully functioning regional transit system with rail is not a-one session bill,' La Rue Hatch said. 'This is the first step in getting there.'
Rail transit would ease traffic and congestion while reducing emissions that exacerbate climate change, La Rue Hatch said.
There have been previous efforts to assess feasibility of rail transit systems in Las Vegas and Reno by regional transportation groups, La Rue Hatch noted.
State lawmakers even passed legislation in 2017 authorizing Southern Nevada to pursue a light rail system. Upon consideration, Southern Nevada officials in 2019 opted to enhance the bus system instead.
La Rue Hatch said there was 'never a plan for how we would make those things get off the ground,' adding discussions and studies assessing regional rail systems were 'all happening in silos' without much coordination.
'The legislature is not fully informed on how we can help support this,' she said.
The aim of the bill would be to consolidate efforts, build on the work that's already being done and bring recommendations to the legislature, she said.
La Rue Hatch was joined by Gabe Christenson, legislative director for SMART TD, which represents railroad conductors, and Anne Macquarie with the Nevada Rail Coalition, an advocacy group made up of railroad unions and environmental groups, in presenting the bill to the committee on Tuesday.
Christenson said with an increased number of people relocating to Nevada, transportation infrastructure is struggling to keep up with demand.
'Building new roads or even expanding existing roads is a massive financial endeavor that takes a very long time,' he said. 'In many cases, by the time the projects are done, it's already time to start expanding again.'
While it would be up to the working group to assess funding sources to pay for a potential rail system, 'there are billions of dollars available annually in the form of federal grants for new passenger rail projects,' he said.
Neither Christenson nor any of the lawmakers discussed how efforts by President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk, an unelected adviser and director of the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, to slash government services and funding federal cuts could stymie efforts to use federal dollars for a potential regional rail system.
The legislation also proposed looking at state, private and nonprofit dollars as potential funding sources.
Macquarie said rail systems bring economic benefits to communities.
'Property taxes in the areas surrounding stations can quadruple when they're developed with businesses that serve rail passengers,' she said, while contributing 'to meeting the state's environmental, economic and quality of life goals.'
The working group outlined in the bill would include representatives from Clark and Washoe Counties, both counties Regional Transportation Commissions, state lawmakers, labor unions, as people with expertise in rail transit.
The study bill received overwhelming support from business groups and environmental organizers.
Reno Ward 4 City Councilwoman Meghan Ebert was the lone local elected official to testify in support of the bill.
Ebert, who represents a more rural area of Reno, said the number one concern she hears from constituents is about the lack of transit infrastructure and 'ways to get in and out of the North valley into the rest of Reno.'
'I think this is a great option to move this forward and find ways to include light rail or whatever type of train system the study decides is feasible,' Ebert said.
Both the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada and Regional Transportation Commission of Washoe County supported the proposal.
Michael Hillerby, a lobbyist with the RTC in Washoe, said the county is in the middle of its own feasibility study using outside consultants, but didn't specify a timeline for when it would be completed.
The Vegas Chamber also supported the bill, requesting the working group include a member from the chamber as well. La Rue Hatch said she was open to adding a representative for a trade association or Chamber of Commerce.
The committee took no action on the bill.
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