Passenger Trains > Passenger Service to Quad Cities and Rockford

There is some belief that the State of Illinois will finally be able to pass a capital plan for transportation now that the dust has settled from the mid-term elections. Supporters of the proposed state-sponsored plans to provide Amtrak service between Chicago and Moline, IL and Chicago and Rockford, IL are hopeful that progress on both stalled projects can continue once this plan is passed.
From today's Chicago Tribune: https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/columnists/wisniewski/ct-biz-train-amtrak-quad-cities-dubuque-rockford20181115-story.html

 
 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/19/18 09:17 by kevink.

Article's file photo I believe is Minot, ND

joemvcnj Wrote:
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> Article's file photo I believe is Minot, ND

I think you are correct.  But hey, for a newspaper file photo be grateful it's America!  :-)

Gordon

I won’t hold my breath, here... But... If that Rockford train comes back, I’ll come back with it— that’s my hometown and I was there when the Black Hawk made its inaugural run, Feb 13, 1974.
Maybe, just maybe, you can go home again?!?

I have dealt with this reporter in the past.
Receptive to fluff human interest stories but no interest in facts.
Only facts she is interested in are from "approved"` sources such as a certain 
transportation expert from a local university or Roger Harnish.  Harnish is quoted
in every Amtrak story she has written over the years.
Who is Roger Harnish and what qualifies him as an expert?

Funny the ridership figures quoted for Chicago-St. Louis are different than the figures
from the TO post of a few days ago.

Figures lie and ..............

I can`t wait to spend half a day riding the train to Moline.
The train might be successful if it went through to Indiana or Tennessee.  Everybody who can
is leaving Illinois.

Money would be better spent extending the Metra Rock Island service west of Joliet.
Many people in the Illinois River Valley currently drive to New Lenox or Mokena and then ride Metra downtown.
Quick trip on I-80, then a wide selection of train times and avoidance of insane parking fees downtown. Plus LaSalle St.
has a much better location than CUS.

With all the intermodal traffic being dumped on I-80 it is becoming quite congested through Joliet.  Extending 
Metra past Joliet is a no brainer.  Then as patronage builds further extension could be made by the state INCREMENTALLY
where you have established a market exists.   Back to my dream world now.
 

Englewood Wrote:
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> Who is Roger Harnish and what qualifies him as an
> expert?

That would be Rick Harnish, Executive Director of the Midwest High Speed Rail Association
>
> Funny the ridership figures quoted for Chicago-St.
> Louis are different than the figures
> from the TO post of a few days ago.

Different sources?

> Money would be better spent extending the Metra
> Rock Island service west of Joliet.

I don't disagree with extending Metra but those areas need to stand up and get the funding for extending Metra. There has been a concerted effort by parties in the Quad City area to bring passenger rail service to that area. 

 

Speaking of extending Metra service, I would think the West line to Dekalb would be a no brainer.
If you are that far, you might as well run to Rochelle and connect to the ex-CB&Q/Milw Rd line up
to Rockford.  That would be cheaper than rehabbing the Belvidere line.

Metra routes can only be extended to the limits of the six county area.

Until I spent time in areas like Morris and Ottawa I was unaware of the amount of people from
distant communities who utilize Metra on their trips to Chicago.  Metra is more convenient than
Amtrak because of the number of  schedule choices.  People could drive to Dwight or Mendota and take 
their chances with spotty Amtrak on time performance or take reliable Metra.

kevink Wrote:
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> I don't disagree with extending Metra but those
> areas need to stand up and get the funding for
> extending Metra. There has been a concerted effort
> by parties in the Quad City area to bring
> passenger rail service to that area. 
>

The problem is who stands up.

The ill conceived extension of the Southwest Service to Manhattan is a good example.
It was stood up for by a now out of office Illinois congressman who got the grant money from Washington.
Service has already been cut by a third.  Reports have mentioned the remaining two round trips
to nowhere, I mean Manhattan, may be on the block due to budget problems.

The politicians looking to waste money for votes need to sit down and shut up.  
 

Englewood Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> kevink Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
>
> > I don't disagree with extending Metra but those
> > areas need to stand up and get the funding for
> > extending Metra. There has been a concerted
> effort
> > by parties in the Quad City area to bring
> > passenger rail service to that area. 
> >
>
> The problem is who stands up.
>
> The ill conceived extension of the Southwest
> Service to Manhattan is a good example.
> It was stood up for by a now out of office
> Illinois congressman who got the grant money from
> Washington.
> Service has already been cut by a third.  Reports
> have mentioned the remaining two round trips
> to nowhere, I mean Manhattan, may be on the block
> due to budget problems.
>
> The politicians looking to waste money for votes
> need to sit down and shut up.  
>  
Of course, Illinois is largely bankrupt.

Englewood Wrote:
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> Metra routes can only be extended to the limits of
> the six county area.

Absolutely correct. As the RTA's enabling legislation is currently written, in order to get Metra (or Pace) service into an area not already in the six-county RTA district, the ENTIRE COUNTY must elect to join the RTA district and EVERYONE IN THE COUNTY agrees to pay the fuel tax and any other levies the RTA may lawfully impose.

Unril the RTA legislation is changed to allow individual cities/townships, etc. to join the district I doubt you will see Metra expand much beyond where it goes now. The one significant extension that would not require adding territory to the district would be the long-discussed extension of the Milwaukee District West Line from Big Timber Road in Elgin up the UP Belvidere Sub to Huntley or Marengo, both still within McHenry County.
 
No way in hell all the people in all the rural areas and little burgs of DeKalb County are going to pony up so the rich suburban kids can ride Metra to Northern Illinois University (or, conversely, let the gang-bangers come out to God's Country). This is why the UP West Line ends at Elburn...it's the last town on the line in Kane County and within the RTA district. DeKalb is also why Elburn has a parking lot with more spaces than there are vehicles registered in Elburn.

There was an initiative a few years back to create a new transit district along the Illinois River valley to suppport Joliet-Morris-Ottawa-LaSalle-Peru commuter train service that then would have been contracted out to Metra to operate in coordination with the Rock Island District, but AFAIK nothing much has ever come of that. The mayor of Ottawa at the time (Bob Eschbach) was one of the big proponents.

NZ

reindeerflame Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Englewood Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > kevink Wrote:
> >
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> > -----
> >
> > > I don't disagree with extending Metra but
> those
> > > areas need to stand up and get the funding
> for
> > > extending Metra. There has been a concerted
> > effort
> > > by parties in the Quad City area to bring
> > > passenger rail service to that area. 
> > >
> >
> > The problem is who stands up.
> >
> > The ill conceived extension of the Southwest
> > Service to Manhattan is a good example.
> > It was stood up for by a now out of office
> > Illinois congressman who got the grant money
> from
> > Washington.
> > Service has already been cut by a third.
>  Reports
> > have mentioned the remaining two round trips
> > to nowhere, I mean Manhattan, may be on the
> block
> > due to budget problems.
> >
> > The politicians looking to waste money for
> votes
> > need to sit down and shut up.  
> >  
> Of course, Illinois is largely bankrupt.


Unfunded public service pensions.