| East Texas, December 15, 2023 – The Chief Elected Officials Board and Rural Transportation Planning Organization of the East Texas Council of Governments invites the public and media to attend a news conference sharing on the I-20 Corridor passenger rail route from Dallas/Fort Worth to Atlanta – through Mineola, Longview, and Marshall. Who: Coalition of East Texas County Judges and Mayors When: Tuesday, December 19, 2023, at 2:00 PM Where: Longview Depot/Multi-Modal Transportation Center Address: 920 E Pacific Ave. Longview, TX 75602 The East Texas Rural Transportation Planning Organization (RTPO) of the East Texas Council of Governments (ETCOG) was established in 2009 to provide for strategic planning for transportation projects that would benefit the 14-county region represented by ETCOG. It is comprised of the Chief Elected Officials, which includes county judges of the ETCOG region and the mayors of Tyler and Longview, the two cities in the ETCOG region with Metropolitan Planning Organizations. Judge Bill Stoudt, who has served as Gregg County Judge for 20 years, and other county judges and mayors will share brief remarks and an update on the long-advocated for I-20 Corridor passenger rail connection between Dallas/Fort Worth and Atlanta, Georgia—through Mineola, Longview, Marshall, Texas and northern Louisiana. This important East-West passenger rail route across the Southern region has been long collaborated on and advocated for by RTPO elected officials in the ETCOG region and the 1st Congressional District of Texas, currently represented by Congressman Nathaniel Moran. The RTPO has been working, in coordination with the non-profit I-20 Corridor Council, on this passenger rail project for more than 15 years. Earlier this month, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) announced that the I-20 Corridor Intercity Passenger Rail Service was one of the selections of FRA’s Corridor Identification and Development Program. This news conference is designed to provide, for the media and public, more information about this important Corridor Identification milestone for the I-20 Corridor passenger rail project. Please see the attached list for the names of the members of the RTPO Board. | 
