Senator Sandoval's leadership delivers $400 million for the High Speed Rail Initiative in Illinois
Pictured in
the foreground during a legislative tour of the public transportation
system in Chicago: State Senator Martin Sandoval, Chairman of the
Illinois Senate Transportation Committee; Rep. Julie Hamos (D-Evanston)Mass
Transit Committee Chairperson of the Illinois House of Representatives;
Phil Pagano, METRA Executive Director (standing in the back).
Springfield,
Illinois - State Senator Martin A. Sandoval (D-12) bold leadership to
improve the transportation infrastructure network in Illinois led to
successfully allocating $400 million for a new high-speed rail in the
Midwest.
"As chairman of
the Illinois Senate Transportation Committee it has been a priority of
mine not only to make possible the planning, construction and repair of
highways, roads, streets and bridges but also to leave a legacy such as
this important project of the High-Speed Rail from St. Louis to Chicago
in the near future. I am proud that this investment for the High-Speed
Rail initiative in Illinois is close to becoming a reality. I commend
Governor Pat Quinn, Speaker of the House Mike Madigan and the President
of the Senate John J. Cullerton for their support in making this vision
a reality," said Chairman Sandoval.
The estimated cost to upgrade the St. Louis-Springfield-Bloomington-Joliet-Chicago
for 110 mph service and a two-and-a-half-hour trip time between
Springfield and Chicago is at least $2 billion. The federal guidelines
for the distribution of stimulus funds for high speed rail will not be
issued until June, but we anticipate an 80:20 match. "That means the
closer we can get to $400 million in state money to draw $1.6 billion in federal money, the better." said Chairman Sandoval.
"President
Barack Obama has transformed American high-speed rail policy. Now it's
time for the State of Illinois to transform state policy and embrace
high-speed rail. The State of Illinois' capital investment program over
the next five years must take advantage of these federal resources in
order to grow our economy with product, energy-efficient
transportation. The St. Louis-Springfield-Bloomington-Joliet-Chicago
route is the signature high-speed rail route for the State of Illinois
and with an investment by the state and the federal government, we
anticipate more daily round-trips with much faster trip times - faster
than driving." said Chairman Sandoval.
"Two
trains - the General Assembly and the Governor - did not leave the
Capitol without delivering on the state's share of high-speed rail."
"I
was confident that the Illinois General Assembly would invest in
passenger rail service. We are the second biggest state program for
Amtrak service in the country, and this General Assembly just three
years ago doubled the size of the Amtrak Illinois program that resulted
in doubled ridership. Our actions helped to spark the national
turnaround for Amtrak, and now states around the nation have been
looking to follow our lead. Just look at our President and our
Secretary of Transportation from Illinois. They are fellow Illinois
rail people. They get it. We get it in Illinois."
"Moving
people on high-speed rail helps to reduce our traffic gridlock in
Northeast Illinois by taking cars off the road and strengthens our
state's economy by linking our cities closer together. The rest of the
world is investing in high-speed rail - China alone will spend $730
billion on high-speed rail over the next decade -- and Illinois has to
get working." concluded Chairman Sandoval who represents the 12th Legislative District that includes a segment of the Southwest Side of Chicago and the suburbs of Cicero, Berwyn and Stickney.
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