Tag Archives: passenger rail

Amtrak, Tri-County Regional Planning Commission

Hey, Tri-County Regional Planning Commission: Get together behind Peoria to Chicago direct rail service

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Here we go again. The old Peoria-to-Bloomington commuter train idea is apparently still on the table over at the Tri-County Regional Planning Commission. Let’s go over this again:

Nobody wants to take a train to Bloomington. The only reason anyone would ever take a train to Bloomington is to continue on to Chicago or St. Louis. And if their ultimate destination is elsewhere, they’ll just drive to Bloomington to catch the train. Bloomington has free parking and virtually no traffic congestion. So a Peoria-Bloomington route is doomed to fail.

Peoria to Chicago, on the other hand, would be a heavily-traveled route. Since Chicago would be the ultimate destination for most train trips anyway (they’re a major Amtrak hub, unlike St. Louis), it makes sense to have a direct route from Peoria. Those in the tri-county area could avoid the commute to Bloomington to catch the train, as well as avoiding the traffic congestion and high cost of parking in Chicago.

Look at it this way: imagine we’re talking about air service instead of train service. Can you imagine anyone seriously suggesting that the best we could do is to offer commuter flights to Bloomington for those who wanted to continue on to Chicago (or any other destination)? With a layover? Where you have to switch planes and transfer your own bags? Would anyone buy a ticket on that flight? No. And they won’t take a commuter train to Bloomington, either.

We need our legislators to start fighting for Peoria transportation options instead of fighting against them. You would think we’d be in a great position having a home-town boy as Secretary of Transportation, and yet LaHood is the biggest obstacle. He’s never supported train service for Peoria. In fact, he’s been downright ornery opposing it. Why? Does Caterpillar not want train service to Peoria or something? And what about Durbin? He supported the Quad Cities in their effort to get passenger rail service–why isn’t he doing more to push Peoria’s effort? Where are our advocates?

The Greater Peoria Area is the third-largest metropolitan statistical area (MSA) in the state. There’s demand for passenger rail service here. Instead of the Illinois Department of Transportation giving away millions of dollars to build new and unsustainable roads through cornfields (Orange Prairie Road extension, Pioneer Parkway extension), why don’t they put that money toward a responsible and sustainable mode of transportation that would help the whole region: direct passenger rail service from Peoria to Chicago?Откъде да купя икона

Amtrak, Illinois Dept. of Transportation

Direct passenger rail route to Chicago denied; Peorians told to ride the bus

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Right about the time I stopped blogging last year, the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) released its “Feasibility Report of Proposed Amtrak Service” between Chicago and Peoria. So I’m five months late with my analysis. But then, IDOT was about three years late releasing the study.

All you need to read to know that this feasibility report is a sham is this paragraph from the introduction:

With the successful application by the State of Illinois for federal stimulus funding to upgrade the Chicago-St. Louis corridor (hereinafter referred to as “corridor”) to a maximum speed of 110 mph, the study request was modified to one route that would provide the Peoria area with connectivity to certain Amtrak corridor trains. After an initial review of the various routes, it became apparent that instead of a complete route feasibility study between Chicago and Peoria, either a rail or bus shuttle between the Peoria area and Normal, Illinois, utilizing the new multi-modal station currently under construction at Normal, would be the most expedient way to meet the State’s goal. A decision was made by IDOT that no through-train frequencies between Peoria and Chicago were to be considered.

And there you have it. The feasibility study — first requested in March 2007 — was aborted before it ever began.

You see, the original request to study direct service between Peoria and Chicago. There was no request for this to be a high-speed train or to connect to a high-speed corridor. But then the request was inexplicably modified. Instead of simply looking at direct service, the request was changed to look at service that would connect with the new “high speed” corridor between Chicago and St. Louis that passes through Normal.

Well, that screwed up everything. Now the only routes they can consider are the shortest routes to the “high speed” corridor, and how to get the train up to 110 mph once it gets there. Based on this new criteria, IDOT decided they weren’t even going to consider direct service to Chicago from the State’s third-largest metropolitan statistical area.

Instead, they spent four and a half years researching the best rail and bus routes from here to Normal. It doesn’t take a member of Mensa to figure out that rail service between Peoria and Normal is idiotic. But they did the math anyway and determined that it would cost $134 million in infrastructure and capital costs, plus an operating subsidy of $2,211,000 per year. Bus service? No infrastructure or capital costs, and an annual operating subsidy of $273,000.

So, thanks to a mysteriously modified request, we have a “feasibility report” that says, “drive to Normal if you want to go to Chicago.” In other words: status quo. No rail service for you.

The first question I want answered is, who modified the request? Was it IDOT? The Tri-County Regional Planning Commission? Ray LaHood? Who? And my next question is, of course, why?

Why was a study of a direct route to Chicago aborted? Included at the end of the report (starting on page 19) is what I can only assume is their “initial review of various routes.” And “Route B” looks very attractive, and feasible. It would travel south from Chicago through Joliet and Pontiac to Chenoa, then head west to East Peoria over the Toledo, Peoria and Western Railroad (TP&W), which they say has “relatively light” traffic — only three trains a day on average.

Furthermore, the cost to upgrade the TP&W infrastructure so that passenger trains could travel at 79 mph (not “high speed”) is only $52 million — less than half the $106 million they estimate it would cost to improve the tracks between Peoria and Normal to the same speed. Heck, even if they upgraded Route B to 110 mph (“high speed”), it would still cost $6 million less than upgrading tracks between Peoria and Normal to 79 mph speeds. And since Route B would be a through-train from Peoria all the way to Chicago, it would have higher ridership and thus higher revenue, which would reduce its annual operating subsidy.

But IDOT didn’t consider this option because, apparently, it wasn’t “the most expedient way to meet the State’s goal.” Why wasn’t it?

Who spiked the IDOT-Amtrak feasibility study and why? That’s the question that demands an answer.

City of Peoria, Transportation

Spoof shows absurdity of train to Normal

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Outrage. Disbelief. Skepticism. These were all feelings people told me they had while reading my April Fools Day post — a mock news report saying all Peoria flights would be going through Bloomington’s airport.

Everybody recognizes that flying to Bloomington and switching planes would be silly. Those who fly want direct flights to major hub cities, like Chicago.

Yet local leaders are actively pursuing something equally absurd: a passenger train to Normal. Instead of pursuing a direct route to Chicago, local leaders are all too willing to settle for a shuttle to the twin cities where passengers can switch to another train that will then take them to Chicago.

It will never work. People take the train to save time and money. A train into Chicago saves time since gridlock traffic can be averted getting into the city. Money is saved because a round-trip ticket is less than the cost to park in Chicago, let alone the cost of gas to drive there.

But going from Peoria to Chicago via a connecting train in Bloomington will add considerable time and expense — time and expense that can be avoided by simply driving to Bloomington and parking for free. And that’s what people will do.

The city should be pursuing direct passenger rail service to Chicago, not a shuttle to Bloomington-Normal. For additional reasons, see David Jordan’s posts on this topic here and here.

2011 Election, Amtrak, City Council, City of Peoria, Transportation

Quick comments on the news

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Scanning over the Journal Star this morning, there are several interesting articles:

  • Transportation Symposium — Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood had some words of wisdom for Peoria about the possibility of getting passenger rail service: “Get your act together…. Get your priorities. Put them on a list. Agree on them,” he said. “Make sure your elected representatives know what those priorities are.” Those priorities should be to establish direct passenger rail service between Peoria and Chicago. The Peoria Passenger Rail Coalition advocates for that outcome.

  • Another City Council candidate announces — Andre Williams is going to run for the Council, joining Chuck Weaver and Chuck Grayeb who have already announced. I imagine there will be more surprise candidates next week. If more than 10 people run, there will be a primary in February to narrow the field to 10; the general election is in April. Williams is a strategic planner who wants to see the City clarify its vision and compete against larger cities like St. Louis for economic development instead of East Peoria. It will be interesting to hear how he thinks we ought to do that.

  • Carnegie’s closed –Not to be nitpicky, but I believe the restaurant is actually called Carnegie’s 501 now, a shadow of its former glory when it was known simply as Carnegie’s. This comment from hotel manager Bill Carter was telling: “We’re temporarily closing to make some improvements. Depending on what happens with the new hotel [emphasis added], it could reopen as a remade restaurant or it could just reopen with some improvements.” Wait, I thought Mr. Matthews had all his plans finalized and all his funding secured? That’s what he told the council months ago. Why all the uncertainty?
Amtrak

Rail link to Bloomington will doom rail service for Central Illinois

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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 passenger service that links downstate’s three Amtrak lines with service from Galesburg to Champaign. That starts with service from East Peoria to Normal.

The article is by columnist Terry Bibo, and unfortunately she doesn’t list any members of the committee other than Tazewell County board member Dean Grimm (who’s the chairman) and Tri-County Regional Planning director Terry Kohlbuss. It might be helpful to know who is making these decisions.

You might think from reading the quote above that the committee only wants to see rail service between East Peoria and Normal, but not so fast:

[T]ransportation officials are applying for a $160,000 grant for alternatives analysis. The grant would look at possibilities from carpooling to buses to rail service.

Kohlbuss is quoted later as saying he sees it as “a ramp-up process” to increase the number of rail users and build up demand. Grimm recognized the need for public support, saying, “I would hope people in Peoria — in central Illinois — value passenger train transportation. That’s the only way this is going to fly.” State Sen. Dave Koehler and Peoria Mayor Jim Ardis are reportedly already on board with the committee’s goals. I heard that Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood was on the radio this morning singing the praises of this plan as well. (LaHood, you may recall, used to be against rail service, saying people should just drive to Bloomington.)

My take: This is terribly disappointing in so many ways, I hardly know where to start.

On the positive side, I want to say that I’m glad our local leaders are focusing more attention on passenger rail. We need our local leaders’ buy-in so that the money can be appropriated and the project can happen. That there’s a committee formed is a good start in principle, although I would like to know who exactly is on it.

I knew a committee was being formed and expressed interest in being on it myself, but obviously the decision was made not to include me. That’s a little disappointing, given that I’ve started a grassroots organization called the Peoria Passenger Rail Coalition and have talked to the Mayor and Kohlbuss about my interest in working with them. But hey, they have their reasons (probably very good ones) and it’s their right to choose who they want and don’t want on their committee. I have no complaint about that.

I do have a complaint about their plans, however.

First of all, the timing is unfortunate. There is still an Amtrak-IDOT study pending that’s looking at the feasibility of establishing Peoria-Chicago passenger rail service. We really should see the results of that study before we assume it can’t be done and start looking at least-desired options. I fear this new development could influence the current study — perhaps even lead to its abandonment — if IDOT and Amtrak feel the political will is gone for a Peoria-Chicago connection.

Secondly, the plan itself is flawed. There is no demand of which I’m aware for rail access to Bloomington. If you’re going to Bloomington, you’re going to need a car in order to get around their sprawling city (likewise for anyone from Bloomington who would be traveling to Peoria). If you’re coming from Chicago, it’s reasonable to take the train and rent a car or take the bus in Bloomington. But it would be absurd to take the train from Peoria to Bloomington and then rent a car or take the bus. We’re so close to Bloomington that people traveling there are going to drive, period. It’s simply not a viable rail destination from Peoria.

Equally implausible is that sufficient numbers of people will want to take a train to Bloomington simply to connect with a Chicago- or St. Louis-bound train. To be sure, there would be some ridership for such a service, but not enough to sustain it. It would add time and cost that could be saved by driving to Bloomington and parking for free at their Amtrak station. How many Peoria residents already drive to Bloomington to take advantage of cheaper airfares and free parking at the Central Illinois Regional Airport? The same thing would likely occur here.

At least there’s a reason to go to Bloomington — to catch another train. Looking at it the other way, why would anyone want to travel from Bloomington to Peoria? Or East Peoria, for that matter. I mean, is there any chain restaurant or big box store in East Peoria that Bloomington doesn’t already have? What’s the attraction, exactly?

The most dangerous thing about this plan, however, is Grimm’s final quote — remember he said, “I would hope people in Peoria — in central Illinois — value passenger train transportation.” What this means is, if the Peoria-Bloomington rail link is a failure (as I believe it would be), then our local officials are going to believe that means people in Peoria and central Illinois don’t value train transportation. And that would be a travesty.

Central Illinois does value train travel, and will use train transportation — but only if it’s a viable route that goes where we want to go. We don’t want to go to Bloomington. We want to go to Chicago. Establish Peoria to Chicago passenger rail service and you will see success.

Amtrak, City of Peoria, Illinois Dept. of Transportation

Still on my radar: Peoria Amtrak feasibility study

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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 ask the status of the report. The latest estimate from his Amtrak contact is that the report will be finished and released this summer — and, Ardis added, the Amtrak representative “thought it would be favorable for us.”

Investment in new rail lines is moving ahead despite the state’s deficit problems. Before Peoria’s study was initiated, IDOT and Amtrak did a study on re-establishing service between Chicago and the Quad Cities. That report was favorable, and in January Gov. Quinn announced “$45 million in state capital funds to establish passenger rail service from Chicago to the Quad Cities. The new service will result in up to 825 new jobs, including 440 construction jobs.” Hopefully Peoria will get similar results when the Chicago-Peoria study is finally finished.

Amtrak’s ridership continues to increase in Illinois (up 10% on the Chicago-St. Louis route and up 4.1% on the Chicago-Quincy route), and yet still no train travels through greater Peoria — the third-largest metropolitan statistical area in the state.