The Detroit Free Press has an interesting look at the current and future state of the Detroit-Chicago Wolverine line.
Scheduled for upgrades funded by federal dollars, the project is an interesting example of state-supported rail. The State of Michigan is in the process of purchasing the corridor's track from Norfolk Southern; once the purchases closes, the line will be overhauled to increase train speed and on-time performance. The Michigan DOT is giving particular emphasis to reducing the "mystery" of train travel by cutting down on the number of slow stretches and dead stops, problems that are dealt with through track and signal work.
Though pondering the implications of all this new construction for current riders, the article sums it up nicely by saying:
"It really is a happy problem, this requirement to spend $403.2 million of federal money on rail in our state. It breaks down to $150 million allocated for the Dearborn-Kalamazoo track, $196.5 million to prepare the route for 110-m.p.h. service, $3.2 million for a corridor environmental study, $9.4 million for a west Detroit track project and $44.1 million for new stations."
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