FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 10/20/00 DOT Official to Speak to State Rail Passenger Group in Burlington (Burlington, Iowa) The director of the Iowa Department of Transportation's Modal Division, Neil Volmer, will address the Iowa Association of Railroad Passengers (IARP) meeting, Saturday, October 28, 2000, at the restored Burlington Amtrak Train Depot, 300 S. Main Street, Burlington, Iowa. The meeting begins at 2:45 p.m. Volmer is expected to discuss the Midwest Regional Rail Initiative, a nine-state effort toward improved passenger rail service across the region. The Modal Division, which Volmer directs, is responsible for aviation, public transit and freight and passenger rail transportation in the state. The meeting is open to the public and the public is invited to attend. An informal lunch with individual settlement will be held at Big Muddyâs Restaurant (housed in a former railroad freight house), 710 North Front Street, Burlington (319) 753-1699 at 12:30 p.m., prior to the meeting. The formal meeting is part of a two day series of events. They include: tours of the restored depot, from 10:00 a.m. to noon, Saturday; a tour, reception and meet the authors presentation at the Apple Tree Museum, 1616 Dill Street, Burlington at 7:00 p.m.; and a tour of the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad Locomotive Shops, West Burlington, on Sunday morning. The special evening presentation is by railroad historians and authors Brent Maxwell and Bill Lindsay, who wrote "The Story of the Muscatine, Burlington and Southern Railway Company." Iowa Association of Railroad Passengers President Henry C. Wulff of Urbandale, says IARP is a statewide group that supports rail service, both passenger and freight. Wulff also says the group meets at various locations throughout the state. Previous recent meeting sites have included Amana, Des Moines, Iowa City, Davenport and Cedar Rapids. The group was also a co-sponsor of a multi-state meeting on rail passenger service in Chicago last April. Membership information is available from the Iowa Association of Railroad Passengers, Inc., 3349 Southgate Court, SW, Suite 108, Cedar Rapids, Iowa 524045424. Membership information will also be available at the meeting. Information about the organization is available on the Internet at http://www.simpson.edu/~iarp.