Plans to bring a passenger train service back to Michigan Central were unveiled Wednesday inside the historic Detroit former rail station.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced a $40 million plan to build a transportation hub adjacent to the former train station in Corktown that would allow for an intercity bus service and train connecting Amtrak’s Chicago-Detroit Wolverine line through an underwater tunnel to Canada, where passengers could continue to Toronto.

Beth Kmetz-Armitage, director of commercial development at Michigan Central, said an Amtrak rail line already connects Toronto to Chicago under the Detroit River but is only used to carry freight traffic. The plan is to build a “multimodal” hub west of the station where riders could board starting in 2028. Early rider projections estimate 66,000 riders annually.

Michigan Central won’t serve as the boarding station. The transit hub would be built across the street on land owned by Ford Motor Co. Riders who travel to and from Canada would go through a border checkpoint in Windsor. Kmetz-Armitage said the connection could also send riders west along Amtrak’s Wolverine line.

“We see this as strengthening regional connections, both immediately regional in Ann Arbor and even broadly Midwestern regional all the way to Chicago,” she said.

The Michigan Department of Transportation, City of Detroit and Michigan Central signed a memorandum of understanding committing to research and engineering for the project, which requires approval from the Canadian government and further design and public engagement efforts.

“As Detroit’s innovation ecosystem grows at an unprecedented rate, our transit infrastructure must evolve alongside it by linking entrepreneurs and companies to emerging innovation zones and the opportunities they unlock,” Josh Sirefman, CEO of Michigan Central, added in a news release. “This is just another step in positioning Michigan Central as the hub that not only connects people to possibility but drives regional growth.”

Kmetz-Armitage said a $10 million federal grant provided to the state to study intercity bus and rail services at Amtrak’s Detroit station in New Center found that location was too small. The funding will be added to $30 million in state funds for the initial investment at Michigan Central.

It’s unclear whether the new station would replace the New Center Amtrak stop. Environmental and engineering studies must be completed, along with passenger surveys to understand how the new location interacts with the Amtrak line overall.

MDOT operates an aging bus station for Greyhound, Indian Trails and Baron’s Bus services on Howard Street. The bus station is in need of major renovations and doesn’t offer the amenities and functionality expected by modern travelers, according to a press release from Michigan Central.

Michigan Central Station was Detroit’s primary rail depot from 1913 to 1988, built after a fire destroyed an older station on Third Street near the now-demolished Joe Louis Arena, carrying passengers from Detroit to Canada, the Upper Peninsula and west across the state to Chicago.

“For decades, Michigan Central Station was the gateway to Detroit, and we are excited to begin the work of re-establishing train service at a new multi-modal transit facility in the shadow of the station,” Sam Krassenstein, chief of infrastructure for the city of Detroit, said in a released statement. “Detroiters deserve a first-class facility for bus and train service and this agreement puts us on a path to make it happen.”