On Thursday, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker joined U.S. Sens. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Dick Durbin (R-IL) and other state and local leaders to call for federal investment in the Chicago Hub Improvement Program.
The $1.1 billion project is designed to modernize regional rail in the Chicago area and to upgrade Chicago’s Union Station, officials said. The investment would improve rail performance and reduce delays, officials said, while helping to strengthen Illinois and Chicago’s positions in the American transportation system. Buoyed by $50 million from Pritzker’s Rebuild Illinois capital program, the program still needs federal funding.
“The Chicago Hub Improvement Program is an opportunity for new federal infrastructure funding to catalyze the rail system this region deserves,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “This proposal would not only make much-needed improvements to Union Station and existing rail lines throughout Illinois and into Michigan — it would unlock a vast system of new and expanded passenger rail services throughout the Midwest, with Chicago’s Union Station serving as the hub. These kinds of investments allow our residents to more easily access places and opportunities beyond their immediate neighborhoods, and they open doors for new jobs and new businesses.”
Officials hope to secure a $872.8 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration’s Federal/State Partnership Program. Part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the funding is designed to advance regional improvements and to focus on Amtrak’s top national priorities – expanding capacity, eliminating bottlenecks and improving air quality, accessibility, and reliability.
The Illinois Department of Transportation, the Chicago Department of Transportation, Cook County, Metra, the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning and the Michigan Department of Transportation will provide $218.2 million toward the improvements.
Grant from the FRA are expected to be announced later this year.