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CIVIC HERALD
HR 9088 · 119th Congress · HouseIn committee

Polar Express Act of 2026

In plain language: The Department of Transportation will study the feasibility of building a new rail route, called the Polar Express, to connect Alaska with the continental United States railway system. The department will explore potential routes and practical challenges, and must report its findings and recommendations to Congress within two and a half years. This legislation only authorizes research and does not approve any actual construction or provide construction funding.

Provisional — our plain-language summary, pending review.

  1. Jun 2, 2026Referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.
  2. Jun 2, 2026Introduced in House
  3. Jun 2, 2026Introduced in House
Provisionalunreviewed: impact, provisions, stakeholders, summary
People affected—The bill only mandates a feasibility study and does not authorize construction or directly affect any population.
Fiscal magnitude—The bill does not authorize any specific appropriations or commit federal funds for the feasibility study or construction.
Reach12provisional — pending reviewrigor: heuristic llm
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What it does

The provisions, in plain language.

  1. Requires the Secretary of Transportation to begin a feasibility study within 180 days on building a rail route—called the "Polar Express"—to connect Alaska to the continental United States railway system.

    Section 2(a)-(b)provisional

  2. Requires the Secretary to submit the study's results and recommendations to Congress within two years of starting the study.

    Section 2(c)provisional

  3. Specifies that the Act does not authorize actual construction of the rail route or commit federal funds for it.

    Section 3provisional

Who it affects

Who it helps · who it burdens.

Who it helps

  • Congressional transportation committeesReceives the feasibility study results and recommendations from the Secretary of Transportation to inform potential future legislative action.provisional

Who it burdens

  • Secretary of TransportationRequired to initiate a feasibility study on the 'Polar Express' rail route within 180 days and submit a report with results and recommendations within two years.provisional

Dollar-level funding (FEC sector totals) — coming in a later phase.

The original text

Read it for yourself.

Read the original text →
1,224 characters of primary source text.

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