The proposal to link Cleveland,Columbus and Cincinnati with high-speed rail has attracted the interest of nearly 200 municipalities Statewide who want the so-called "THREE-C" Corridor to roll though their town.
But knowing that the number of stops will be low - to keep the trains' speed high - cities like Wellington in Lorain County are already touting why their towns should be among the chosen few.
Steven Pyles is Wellington's Village Administrator.
STEVEN PYLES: "We have a number of large events that draw about 50 thousand visitors to our community every year. Our village is a very historic location. We have a tourist railroad in town that runs seasonally."
Only AMTRAK knows if history will be a deciding factor. The company is due to present findings of a study next month which could identify some potential stops between Cleveland and Cincinnati. Or it may just announce a preferred number of stops, opening competition to towns along the proposed route.
State rail official Stu Nicholson attended a 3C workshop last week with Representatives from more than 120municipalities, eager to hear the state's take on how a town wins a whistle stop.
He told them to `think big' in their presentations.
STU NICHOLSON: "What will you bring to the table? Is there an existing train station? If not, where would you put one? What kind of population area would you draw from? Look upon this as essentially a magnet in your community."
Nicholson says once the corridor moves from the planning stage to being designated a working project, federal funds will be released for environmental and engineering studies, and will trigger matching Transportation Budget grants for money the state spends.
Town leaders, potential passengers, and developers are all tracking decisions of where the line eventually stops.
