| By Big Radio News Staff |

It could take a while, but Rock County is eyeing whether it’d be worth the money to study passenger rail here.

County Administrator Josh Smith Smith says the idea of passenger rail in Clinton, Beloit and Janesville hasn’t gotten a lot of traction within local governments here.

But now, the county board’s new, ad-hoc committee on Passenger Rail Development aims to plow through a few recent independent studies.

They focus on the idea of Rock County tying into Amtrak, Metra and other high speed passenger train lines out of Illinois.

Smith says the committee may also find a key role readying the county for up to $500,000 in federal grant funding to fuel an initial passenger rail feasibility study…if the full board eventually wants one.

The committee meets at 4:30 today. People can tune in through Rock County’s website via Zoom.