Axios Columbus

September 28, 2023
Wow, it's Thursday already? No complaints here!
☔ Today's weather: Chance of showers, thunderstorms. Dense fog expected overnight. High near 71.
🌕 Situational awareness: The harvest moon rises in the sky tonight, and it'll be the last "supermoon" we see until this time next year.
Today's newsletter is 873 words — a 3.5-minute read.
1 big thing: The waiting game for passenger trains
Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios
Reader Jay T. asks: Is there any more recent news on the project to expand passenger rail in Ohio?
It's been more than 40 years since the last passenger train left Columbus — and work continues to bring trains back, eventually.
- Riders will just need to be patient.
Why it matters: We're one of America's biggest cities without passenger rail.
- Proposals to restore train travel could pay huge dividends for local tourism and workforce development, transit advocates tell us.
Catch up quick: The 2021 bipartisan infrastructure package, signed into law by President Biden, allocates billions of dollars toward expanding rail service.
- Since then, states and regional planning commissions have applied for federal funding to study proposed rail corridors across the U.S.
Zoom in: Two such corridors involve Central Ohio.
- The state applied for a "3C&D" line that would connect Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati and Dayton.
- The Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission (MORPC) applied for a "Midwest Connect" line to link Columbus to Fort Wayne and Chicago to the west and Pittsburgh to the east.
The intrigue: Midwest Connect could someday include stops at John Glenn International Airport and smaller cities like Dublin, Hilliard and Newark, MORPC executive director William Murdock tells us.
- These projects would help Central Ohio shed its economic "competitive disadvantage" by attracting a skilled workforce able to travel to work without a car, Murdock argues.
- He envisions a stop east of Columbus to serve employees of the new Intel plant in Licking County.
The latest: The Federal Railroad Administration plans to announce corridor selections in November or December, spokesperson William Wong tells Axios.
What they're saying: Stu Nicholson, executive director of the advocacy group All Aboard Ohio, says he's eager to eventually see some progress made after many years of discussion.
- "We've got a half a dozen irons in the fire for passenger rail in Ohio," Nicholson tells us. "Let's stop talking about stuff and get stuff built."
The big picture: This is just an initial step. Projects would still require environmental and engineering reviews, plus the eventual infrastructure work.
- Nicholson estimates the best-case scenario is for trains to be running through Columbus in about five years, though it could very well take longer.
2. 🎰 State lottery contract could be up for grabs
The Ohio Lottery might switch gaming companies in the coming years. Photo: Andrew Spear/Getty Images
The Ohio Lottery Commission will pursue competitive bids on a new gaming system contract in the near future, Axios Columbus has learned.
Why it matters: The highly coveted contract is currently valued at over $118 million.
State of play: Ohio has contracted with the Greece-based company Intralot since 2009 to provide lottery kiosks at over 10,000 retail locations, plus video lottery terminals inside racinos.
- The contract is now on a two-year renewal and there's an option for one more two-year renewal that would run through June 30, 2027, lottery commission spokesperson Danielle Frizzi-Babb tells Axios.
Between the lines: The hefty contract has drawn scrutiny in the past.
- Ohio waived competitive bidding to renew its Intralot contract in 2019, despite objections from business competitors and state lawmakers, AP reported at the time.
The big picture: If Ohio chooses a different vendor, it would take between two to four years to make the full conversion.
- There would likely be two concurrent contracts to keep lottery services going amid a transition to new equipment, Frizzi-Babb says.
- Intralot has not responded to Axios' inquiry about whether it plans to bid again to remain Ohio's lottery vendor.
Of note: Intralot holds a separate, five-year contract to run the Ohio Lottery's sports betting machines.
3. Nutshells: Your local news roundup
Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios
🏛️ The Ohio Supreme Court heard arguments yesterday on whether the state's six-week abortion ban — which is blocked due to the pending case — should be reinstated. (WCMH-TV)
🎙️ Dispatch reporter Anna Staver will host the "All Sides" public affairs talk show following Ann Fisher's retirement earlier this year. (WOSU)
🏡 Pickerington placed No. 7 nationwide on a list of the best suburbs in America for first-time homebuyers. (Today's Homeowner)
🎓 Ohio State's overall enrollment is down 1% this fall, but international student enrollment has ticked up for the third straight year, suggesting a slight recovery from a pandemic plunge. (Columbus Business First)
4. 💍 Charted: The state of matrimony


Ohio's divorce rate has been trending downward in recent years, while its marriage rate is largely unchanged, according to new census data.
By the numbers: There were 6.6 divorces per 1,000 Ohioans aged 15 and older last year, down from 7.2 in 2021.
- Meanwhile, marriage has returned to its 2014 rate of 15.6 per 1,000 Ohioans, after experiencing a slight increase from 2015-2021.
Of note: Ohio's 2022 marriage and divorce rates were both lower than the national averages (17.3 and 6.9, respectively).
The intrigue: Half of U.S. adults now say they're open to signing a prenup, Axios' Carly Mallenbaum reports.
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5. 🚂 Throwback Thursday: An old-fashioned ride
From the Aug. 31, 1910, edition of the Springfield Daily News, via Newspapers.com.
Ohioans once had ample opportunity to travel the state by train.
Flashback: The above news clipping from 1910 advertised rail excursions on the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis Railway — known to riders as the "Big Four."
- Springfield residents could pay $1 for a trip to Columbus, or shell out a few quarters to reach Lake Erie.
Yes, but: A perfect storm of declining ridership, decaying tracks and federal budget cuts turned us into a car-centric city by the mid-20th century.
- Passenger rail service at Union Station ended in the late '70s.
This newsletter was edited by Lindsey Erdody and copy edited by Kate Sommers-Dawes and Carolyn DiPaolo
Our picks:
🎢 Tyler wishes there was still a $1.25 train to Cedar Point!
😋 Alissa can't keep up with all the exciting additions coming to her side of town — not just Toft's, but also Chicken Salad Chick and Biggby Coffee!
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