After years of dreaming, planning, lobbying, and negotiating, the reality of Chicago-to-Quad Cities passenger rail service is much closer, as the Illinois General Assembly early Friday morning, October 31st, approved about $400 million for the required track upgrades.
Local, state and federal officials gathered Friday afternoon at The Q in downtown Moline (where trains will arrive and depart) to celebrate the news. The new state funding is on top of about $400 million already committed in federal and state dollars necessary. This milestone marks a major victory for the QC and years of regional collaboration.
“We will no longer be a metro area at risk of being isolated, like a rail car slowly detaching from the train of progress,” Moline Mayor Sangeetha Rayapati said at Friday’s press conference. “This feels to me like it’s truly our community’s time to shine.” She said the region collectively showed its passion, drive, resilience and vision by pulling together and advocating new and creative ways to win the needed funding. The Quad Cities Chamber’s campaign to gather public support for rail service was vital, the mayor said. “Today we celebrate teamwork. All these people had a hand in keeping this project in the forefront of the mind of decision makers.”
The state House voted 72-33 to pass Senate bill 2111 around 2:15 a.m. on Friday with only Democrats supporting the plan. The Senate followed with a 36-21 vote in favor of the bill around 4 a.m., concluding more than a year of negotiations.
The bulk of the funding, $860 million, would come through redirecting sales tax revenue charged on motor fuel purchases to public transportation operations. Another estimated $200 million would come from interest growing in the Road Fund — a state fund that is typically used for road construction projects but can also be used for transportation-related purposes under the state constitution.
Local state legislators, including Senator Mike Halpin and Representative Gregg Johnson, have played key roles in championing the QC rail project within the legislature. Earlier this year, with the help of Senator Halpin, the Senate passed a transit reform package which included funding for the rail project.
“We took this opportunity to fight for this project, which the community has been fighting for for decades,” he said Friday, noting that passing the transit package in the veto session served Chicago-area as well as downstate communities.
Members of the Quad Cities Rail Committee, led by Rock Island County Chairman Richard “Quijas” Brunk, traveled many times to Springfield to advocate for the project. Leaders noted that this connection is not only important to the Quad Cities but is good for the entire state. The Rail Committee partnered with Cook County, the Illinois Chamber of Commerce and others to advocate for this funding.
“Studies have shown that every dollar spent on rail construction creates ripple effects across the economy, supporting small businesses, creating good paying construction maintenance jobs and laying the groundwork for long-term growth,” said Johnson.
“There’s still work to be done, discussions to be had, routes to be determined and so on. But that being said, this legislation brings us to the threshold to make rail service happen,” said Brunk.
Halpin emphasized the work to bring Amtrak service to Moline is far from over, noting agreements need to be ironed out between the state and Iowa Interstate Railroad to ensure the improvements are made.
“It was a long week,” Johnson said. “This is a great day for the Quad Cities and western Illinois. For years, we have worked tirelessly to make passenger rail a reality. Passenger rail is on its way.”
“We owned Springfield this week,” he enthused. “We got this done.” Doug House of Rock Island, retired deputy secretary of the Illinois Department of Transportation, attended Friday’s announcement and was credited for being a major force in getting the funding through.
Last fall, Iowa Interstate Railroad, Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT), BNSF Railway, and Amtrak agreed on the preliminary engineering plans detailing the initial improvements required to implement passenger rail service between Chicago and the QC.
“IAIS remains committed to hosting this new inter-city passenger rail service once all of the required improvements are complete and ongoing operating agreements are in place with IDOT and other stakeholders,” the railroad has said. “This is a tremendous win for the Quad Cities and another critical step in getting us that much closer to the reality of passenger rail,” Visit Quad Cities president/CEO Dave Herrell said Friday. “Passenger rail from the Chicagoland area to Moline is a transformative opportunity that will add significant value and community benefit as we continue to position the Quad Cities region for the future.
“Passenger rail will strengthen tourism, drive our visitor economy, stimulate economic development, and enhance quality of life. Bolstering our connectivity to the leading source market for visitation helps us further leverage this market but has broader implications for mobility options in a 21st-century economy,” he added.
“We are deeply grateful to all our local, state, and federal elected leaders and to everyone involved with advocating for this vital regional priority.” “This is a big deal for our region,” Herrell said, noting the Chicago area is the top source for visits to the QC. Direct rail service is “going to add tremendous value to our visitor economy,” he said.
Halpin said the entire project for engineering and track upgrades for passenger rail is estimated to cost $800 million, and once Gov. JB Pritzker signs the newest package, the money will be appropriated, but there isn’t a proposed timetable for work to be completed.
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