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Passenger Rail task force members include former Peoria mayor

Richard Neumiller, former mayor of Peoria and member of the now defunct railroad commission, is on a new passenger rail task force put together by the Tri-County Regional Planning Commission (TCRPC). Neumiller was appointed by Mayor Jim Ardis to represent Peoria on the task force. Here is the full list of task force members, [...]

Rail link to Bloomington will doom rail service for Central Illinois

The Journal Star reports (no link — it’s a “First in Print” article) that a new passenger rail advisory group has been formed:

A 21-member committee formed of local government officials and appointees from the Tri-County Regional Planning Commission, it set priorities in its first couple of meetings. In the long run, the goal would be [...]

Help bring passenger rail back to Peoria

As you may have read in today’s Journal Star, I’ve started a grassroots organization for the purpose of advocating for passenger rail service between Peoria and Chicago. It’s called the Peoria Passenger Rail Coalition, and it’s free to join.

I talk to a lot of people who would like to have train service in [...]

Still on my radar: Peoria Amtrak feasibility study

Since 2007, Amtrak and the Illinois Department of Transportation have been studying the feasibility of establishing a Peoria-Chicago train route. The report has been constantly delayed, pushed off one or two seasons at a time. Last time I checked, it was supposed to be released last fall. I recently e-mailed Mayor Ardis to [...]

Amtrak study delayed… again

It was back in 2007 that we first started talking about Amtrak and IDOT doing a feasibility study on a possible Chicago-Peoria route. The study was going to be completed by late 2007, then early 2008. Then there were a number of delays. By the end of 2008, Amtrak/IDOT officials were promising it [...]

President Obama, Vice President Biden, Secretary LaHood Call for U.S. High Speed Passenger Trains

It looks like the United States is finally going to get serious about modernizing its train system. Here’s a press release I received yesterday:

Vision for a New Era in Rail Entails Clean, Energy-Efficient Option for Travelers

Thursday, April 16, 2009 (Washington, DC) — President Barack Obama, along with Vice President Biden and Secretary LaHood, announced a new U.S. push today to transform travel in America, creating high-speed rail lines from city to city, reducing dependence on cars and planes and spurring economic development.

The President released a strategic plan outlining his vision for high speed rail in America. The plan identifies $8 billion provided in the ARRA and $1 billion a year for five years requested in the federal budget as a down payment to jump-start a potential world-class passenger rail system and sets the direction of transportation policy for the future. The strategic plan will be followed by detailed guidance for state and local applicants. By late summer, the Federal Railroad Administration will begin awarding the first round of grants.

Additional funding for long-term planning and development is expected from legislation authorizing federal surface transportation programs.

The report formalizes the identification of ten high-speed rail corridors as potential recipients of federal funding. Those lines are: California, Pacific Northwest, South Central, Gulf Coast, Chicago Hub Network, Florida, Southeast, Keystone, Empire and Northern New England. Also, opportunities exist for the Northeast Corridor from Washington to Boston to compete for funds to improve the nation’s only existing high-speed rail service.

Continue reading President Obama, Vice President Biden, Secretary LaHood Call for U.S. High Speed Passenger Trains

Amtrak study release date now July

David Jordan at Peoria Station has the scoop.

…the study being done by Amtrak on the feasibility of Intercity Rail Service between Chicago and Peoria will be further delayed possibly to July.

The study was supposed to be released [...]

Amtrak study to be released in March

Amtrak and the Illinois Department of Transportation is currently studying the feasibility of establishing passenger train service between Chicago and Peoria. The report was originally supposed to be released toward the end of last year, but there were a number of delays, sources tell Mayor Ardis. Ardis recently gave me a status update — [...]

LaHood adopts language of sustainability

Restoring passenger rail service to Peoria is “cost prohibitive” and “impractical,” according to U.S. Rep. Ray LaHood.

“It’s going to take an enormous amount of money,” he said Tuesday, emphasizing that previous attempts to provide passenger rail to the area failed largely because of an inability to offer a more “efficient” way to travel to Chicago. [...]

Durbin introduces Amtrak fleet improvement bill

U. S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) introduced the “Train Cars Act” (S.3360) on Tuesday in the Senate. The State Journal-Register explains what the bill proposes:

Durbin’s bill provides funding to encourage manufacturers currently supplying passenger rail cars overseas to open modern facilities here. And it provides a tax incentive for private domestic businesses to re-enter the [...]