Duckworth, Durbin, Quigley Call on Transportation Leaders to Reach Agreement, Finalize Federal Funding for Chicago Hub Improvement Project
The lawmakers sent a letter to the leaders of Amtrak, Canadian National, Union Pacific, and Metra calling on them to reach an agreement on project details for the Chicago Hub Improvement Project
[CHICAGO, IL] – U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Representative Mike Quigley (D-IL-05) today sent a letter to the leaders of Amtrak, Canadian National, Metra, and Union Pacific, urging the leaders to reach an agreement on all outstanding aspects of Amtrak and the Illinois Department of Transportation’s upcoming federal grant application to advance the Chicago Hub Improvement Project (CHIP) for Chicago Union Station (CUS). The application for the 2024 Federal-State Partnerships for Intercity Passenger Rail grant, which would help fund the completion of CHIP, is due by December 16. Since the members met with Union Pacific (UP) CEO Jim Vena in February 2024, UP has been a collaborative partner with Amtrak and has been helpful with advancing the project.
The lawmakers emphasized the magnitude of completing the application by writing, “There is much at stake—not only for Chicago, but the entire Midwest—that hinges upon successful submission of a robust application for one of the few remaining rounds of Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding.”
Chicago is a national hub for passenger, commuter, and freight rail, with more trackage radiating in more directions than any other city in North America. CUS serves 3.3 million Amtrak riders annually, along 16 Amtrak intercity rail lines, and has more than 30 million riders across all rail services. Chicago is also at the center of Amtrak’s Midwestern 15-year expansion plan to connect dozens of cities in roughly 160 communities with Amtrak service.
The lawmakers then called on the transportation leaders to work together to submit a coordinated grant application to ensure that the City of Chicago receives the necessary funds to support CHIP.
“If all parties fail to submit and support a coordinated application, the entire region will be at a disadvantage to plan for the future. Aside from the much-needed upgrades that CHIP would make to the internal station, upgrading and enhancing the infrastructure around the station is desperately needed to more safely and efficiently move passenger trains in and out of the station,” the lawmakers wrote.
“We can make these meaningful changes, which will benefit all of the people and goods that move through Chicago, but only with the steadfast dedication and support of all stakeholders. We strongly encourage all parties to come to an agreement so that Chicago, and the future of Midwest passenger rail, do not suffer as a result,” the lawmakers concluded their letter.
In December 2023, DOT announced $93.6 million in federal funding for CHIP through the Federal-State Partnerships for Intercity Passenger Rail grant program, which helped several components of the project to modernize CUS. This included renovating and expanding the station platforms, adding an ingress/egress to improve passenger capacity, bringing platforms in compliance with Americans with Disabilities Act standards, and improving ventilation systems and air quality for nearly 120,000 Amtrak and Metra weekly passengers. The grants also went toward repurposing the Station’s mail platform, which has been out of use since 2005, for intercity rail service, enabling CUS to accommodate passenger growth and support long-term rail service expansion across the Midwest.
A copy of the letter is available here and below:
December 13, 2024
Dear Mr. Gardner, Ms. Robinson, Mr. Derwinski, and Mr. Vena:
We are writing to urge a swift, mutually acceptable agreement on all outstanding aspects of Amtrak and the Illinois Department of Transportation’s upcoming federal grant application to advance the Chicago Hub Improvement Project (CHIP) for Chicago Union Station (CUS). As you are aware, applications for the Federal-State Partnerships for Intercity Passenger Rail (Fed-State) grant are due imminently, on December 16, 2024.
There is much at stake—not only for Chicago, but the entire Midwest—that hinges upon successful submission of a robust application for one of the few remaining rounds of Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding. The City of Chicago is the nation’s passenger, commuter, and freight rail hub, with more trackage radiating in more directions than any other city in North America. CUS serves 3.3 million Amtrak riders annually, along 16 Amtrak intercity rail lines, and has more than 30 million riders across all rail services. Further, Chicago is at the center of Amtrak’s Midwestern 15-year expansion plan to connect dozens of cities in roughly 160 communities with Amtrak service.
If all parties fail to submit and support a coordinated application, the entire region will be at a disadvantage to plan for the future. Aside from the much-needed upgrades that CHIP would make to the internal station, upgrading and enhancing the infrastructure around the station is desperately needed to more safely and efficiently move passenger trains in and out of the station.
We can make these meaningful changes, which will benefit all of the people and goods that move through Chicago, but only with the steadfast dedication and support of all stakeholders. We strongly encourage all parties to come to an agreement so that Chicago, and the future of Midwest passenger rail, do not suffer as a result.
Sincerely,
-30-
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