By Jamey Dunn
Illinois is a step closer to having passenger trains that travel at speeds of more than 100 miles per hour between Chicago and St. Louis.
Gov. Pat Quinn announced in Chicago today the state will break ground in early April on the second phase of a high-speed rail route to connect the two cities. New tracks with ties made of concrete will be built between the northern Illinois village of Dwight and the central Illinois city of Lincoln and between Alton, a southern Illinois city near St. Louis, and the Mississippi River. A new signaling system will also be installed between Dwight and Alton. The $685-million project will be backed with money from $1.2 billion in federal funds awarded to Illinois for high-speed rail projects, as well as $42 million in state capital construction funds. An upgrade to the tracks between Lincoln and Alton, the first phase of the project, began last September.
Trains traveling up to 110 miles per hour are expected to begin routes between Dwight and Pontiac next year. Illinois was the first state to break ground on a federally backed project to create a high-speed rail network in the Midwest. Illinois is also conducting a study on the possibility of one day having passenger trains that could run up to 220 miles per hour.
“We’re going to move people. We’re going to move freight. We’re going to set a standard for America,” U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin said in Chicago. “We’ve just gotten started. There’s a lot more to be done to build these high-speed rail corridors and provide the transportation for the 21st century.”
According to Quinn, the entire project will result in 24,000 new jobs in the state. “We know we have a long way to go, but we’re getting there by investing in public works, especially high-speed rail,” Quinn said of the state’s economic recovery.
Durbin estimates that the second phase of construction will create about 6,200 jobs. The estimates are based on new construction jobs, as well as jobs that would result from the expanded economic activity that is often spurred by infrastructure upgrades. “High-speed rail is more than just an alternative mode of travel — it is a shot in the arm to today’s recovering economy and an investment in infrastructure that will serve us for generations to come. … That economic boost is already being felt in and around Alton, where construction began several months ago,” Durbin said in a written statement.
Showing posts with label High-speed rail. Show all posts
Showing posts with label High-speed rail. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Illinois gets money for high-speed rail
By Rachel Wells
Illinois politicians will travel tomorrow by plane to Amtrak stations in Chicago, Alton and Bloomington to unveil a $1.2 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act award for Illinois high-speed rail improvements.
The funds -- part of a 31-state, $8 billion program -- will go toward rail improvements on the existing Chicago-St. Louis corridor. The improvements will allow trains to travel up to 110 miles per hour and will reduce travel time between the two cities to four hours, a one-hour decrease. The award will also help pay for an environmental impact study regarding the possible construction of a second track along the route and for the streamlining of train traffic near Chicago.
"The federal funding creates benefits for Springfield and the state of Illinois by creating thousands of jobs, increasing economic activity, boosting tourism and reducing travel time between Chicago and St. Louis by over an hour," Illinois Transportation Secretary Gary Hannig said in a news release.
Illinois requested $4.5 billion for rail improvements, more than half of the $8 billion appropriated for improvements throughout the country. President Barack Obama has proposed spending an additional $1 billion on high-speed rail for each of the next five years. The proposal requires congressional approval.
Here's how Illinois' $1.2 billion award breaks down:
• $1.1 billion for track construction and signal, station and rolling stock improvements. The work will allow for three to five daily round trips between Alton and Dwight to travel at up to 110 miles per hour.
• $1.25 million for a supplemental environmental impact statement concerning construction of a second track between Chicago and St. Louis capable of carrying trains traveling at up to 110 miles per hour.
• $133 million for construction of a multi-layered train intersection at Englewood. The project would eliminate delays by carrying commuter lines over tracks that now carry intercity passenger services and freight services.
Among the officials appearing on the tour will be Gov. Pat Quinn, Federal Railroad Administrator Joe Szabo and U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin. Although the route slated for improvement runs through Springfield, Durbin's hometown, officials will not be stopping in the capital city.
High-speed rail has been a topic of controversy in Springfield, where local leaders once threatened legal action if a second track was built on Third Street, where originally planned, but later agreed to an environmental impact study of an alternative track route. At one point the Illinois legislature got involved when House Speaker Michael Madigan, a Chicago Democrat, filed a bill that would have denied state funds for a second track along the Third Street route.
Durbin spokeswoman Christina Mulka said Springfield likely just didn't fit into the officials' schedules. "I wouldn't read anything into that," she said. "We're not trying to avoid the area; it's Sen. Durbin's hometown.
"He wants to see high-speed rail in Springfield, and he wants to see it done in a responsible way. ... He'll probably be in Springfield soon enough to talk about high-speed rail and a whole number of other issues."
Springfield city spokesman Ernie Slottag said he didn't connect the exclusion of Springfield to the controversy, nor did he expect a public protest had officials planned a stop in the city. He said the city is waiting to learn more specific details of the award.
Other Illinois towns have also expressed concern about how high-speed rail could change their communities. For more information about high-speed rail, see the November edition of Illinois Issues.
Illinois politicians will travel tomorrow by plane to Amtrak stations in Chicago, Alton and Bloomington to unveil a $1.2 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act award for Illinois high-speed rail improvements.
The funds -- part of a 31-state, $8 billion program -- will go toward rail improvements on the existing Chicago-St. Louis corridor. The improvements will allow trains to travel up to 110 miles per hour and will reduce travel time between the two cities to four hours, a one-hour decrease. The award will also help pay for an environmental impact study regarding the possible construction of a second track along the route and for the streamlining of train traffic near Chicago.
"The federal funding creates benefits for Springfield and the state of Illinois by creating thousands of jobs, increasing economic activity, boosting tourism and reducing travel time between Chicago and St. Louis by over an hour," Illinois Transportation Secretary Gary Hannig said in a news release.
Illinois requested $4.5 billion for rail improvements, more than half of the $8 billion appropriated for improvements throughout the country. President Barack Obama has proposed spending an additional $1 billion on high-speed rail for each of the next five years. The proposal requires congressional approval.
Here's how Illinois' $1.2 billion award breaks down:
• $1.1 billion for track construction and signal, station and rolling stock improvements. The work will allow for three to five daily round trips between Alton and Dwight to travel at up to 110 miles per hour.
• $1.25 million for a supplemental environmental impact statement concerning construction of a second track between Chicago and St. Louis capable of carrying trains traveling at up to 110 miles per hour.
• $133 million for construction of a multi-layered train intersection at Englewood. The project would eliminate delays by carrying commuter lines over tracks that now carry intercity passenger services and freight services.
Among the officials appearing on the tour will be Gov. Pat Quinn, Federal Railroad Administrator Joe Szabo and U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin. Although the route slated for improvement runs through Springfield, Durbin's hometown, officials will not be stopping in the capital city.
High-speed rail has been a topic of controversy in Springfield, where local leaders once threatened legal action if a second track was built on Third Street, where originally planned, but later agreed to an environmental impact study of an alternative track route. At one point the Illinois legislature got involved when House Speaker Michael Madigan, a Chicago Democrat, filed a bill that would have denied state funds for a second track along the Third Street route.
Durbin spokeswoman Christina Mulka said Springfield likely just didn't fit into the officials' schedules. "I wouldn't read anything into that," she said. "We're not trying to avoid the area; it's Sen. Durbin's hometown.
"He wants to see high-speed rail in Springfield, and he wants to see it done in a responsible way. ... He'll probably be in Springfield soon enough to talk about high-speed rail and a whole number of other issues."
Springfield city spokesman Ernie Slottag said he didn't connect the exclusion of Springfield to the controversy, nor did he expect a public protest had officials planned a stop in the city. He said the city is waiting to learn more specific details of the award.
Other Illinois towns have also expressed concern about how high-speed rail could change their communities. For more information about high-speed rail, see the November edition of Illinois Issues.
Friday, May 22, 2009
Quinn wants high-speed rail for Illinois
By Hilary Russell
The capital plan that recently passed both chambers was missing something that Gov. Pat Quinn said would put Illinois on a path to a more progressive mode of transportation.
Quinn said it was an oversight for lawmakers not to include money for high-speed rail in the $26 billion infrastructure program. Of that, $1.5 billion was not yet earmarked. Quinn said in a Statehouse news conference this morning that he wanted at least a portion of the remaining money to go to high-speed rail.
The General Assembly has nine days to approve a second installment of the capital plan, as well as an operating budget and governmental reforms. “I think it’s important to understand that if we’re going to get this done, we’re going to have to roll up our sleeves in the next week to make this happen,” Quinn said.
High-speed rail would address the economic, energy and environmental crises facing the state and the nation, said Richard Harnish, executive director of the Midwest High Speed Rail Association based in Chicago. It would create jobs, help reduce reliance on motor fuel and reduce air pollutants.
One reason Quinn and a large group of bipartisan legislators want money to be designated for high-speed rail is because it could capture a portion of the $8 billion federal stimulus money available to invest in such transportation. The stimulus package would provide an additional $5 billion in grants over the next five years to kick-start high-speed rail development. To capture a federal match, the state must contribute about $400 million to high-speed rail projects, according to Quinn’s administration.
The first route would travel from St. Louis to Chicago at speeds up to 110 mph. It is being touted as an affordable, environmental alternative to driving or flying with the luxury of shorter travel times.
Hannig said the transportation department has a first-of-its-kind agreement with Union Pacific Railroad to draft a blueprint of the Chicago-St.Louis route, which the team would take to Washington, D.C., as a model and a way to compete with other states for additional stimulus funds.
Chicago to St. Louis would be the first but not the last request, Hannig said. Other routes could include Chicago to Milwaukee, Cleveland and Des Moines.
The capital plan that recently passed both chambers was missing something that Gov. Pat Quinn said would put Illinois on a path to a more progressive mode of transportation.
Quinn said it was an oversight for lawmakers not to include money for high-speed rail in the $26 billion infrastructure program. Of that, $1.5 billion was not yet earmarked. Quinn said in a Statehouse news conference this morning that he wanted at least a portion of the remaining money to go to high-speed rail.
The General Assembly has nine days to approve a second installment of the capital plan, as well as an operating budget and governmental reforms. “I think it’s important to understand that if we’re going to get this done, we’re going to have to roll up our sleeves in the next week to make this happen,” Quinn said.
High-speed rail would address the economic, energy and environmental crises facing the state and the nation, said Richard Harnish, executive director of the Midwest High Speed Rail Association based in Chicago. It would create jobs, help reduce reliance on motor fuel and reduce air pollutants.
One reason Quinn and a large group of bipartisan legislators want money to be designated for high-speed rail is because it could capture a portion of the $8 billion federal stimulus money available to invest in such transportation. The stimulus package would provide an additional $5 billion in grants over the next five years to kick-start high-speed rail development. To capture a federal match, the state must contribute about $400 million to high-speed rail projects, according to Quinn’s administration.
The first route would travel from St. Louis to Chicago at speeds up to 110 mph. It is being touted as an affordable, environmental alternative to driving or flying with the luxury of shorter travel times.
Hannig said the transportation department has a first-of-its-kind agreement with Union Pacific Railroad to draft a blueprint of the Chicago-St.Louis route, which the team would take to Washington, D.C., as a model and a way to compete with other states for additional stimulus funds.
Chicago to St. Louis would be the first but not the last request, Hannig said. Other routes could include Chicago to Milwaukee, Cleveland and Des Moines.
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