Illinois House passes resolution for Moline-Chicago passenger rail

On Tuesday, May 2, the Illinois House adopted Rep. Gregg Johnson's resolution (HR0167) to urge Gov. Pritzker to make a formal request to the National Transportation Board (NTSB) regarding the QC passenger rail project. The resolution intends to bring the NTSB into the efforts to compel the Iowa Interstate Railroad to enter into an agreement on the project. This is a great step forward in the decade-long effort to bring passenger rail to our region.

“This project has been discussed and planned for over a decade, and the Iowa Interstate Railroad is the biggest – and hopefully final – obstacle we face. Getting passenger rail service from Chicago to the Quad Cities could be an economic game changer for our region,” said Johnson. “We know that over 70,000 people flew between Chicago and the Quad Cities Airport. Our area has a billion-dollar visitor economy that employs over 8,600 people. Passenger rail service, along with other infrastructure upgrades, will be what powers our economic future here in the Quad Cities.”

The Quad Cities passenger rail route, running between Chicago and Moline, was initially slated to begin service in 2014. Senator Dick Durbin secured $177 million in federal funding back in 2010, and Governor JB Pritzker committed an additional $225 million in 2019. Despite this funding being available, the last remaining hurdle to construction is an agreement between the Illinois Department of Transportation and Iowa Interstate Railroad on the upgrades needed to convert their existing freight tracks for passenger service. With the passing of this resolution, the pathway to finally bring the project to the QC becomes clearer.

The project is projected to have a $25 million annual economic impact once service begins and bring up to 825 permanent jobs to the Quad Cities region.

Along with Johnson's House resolution, Senator Mike Halpin also submitted a resolution to the Illinois Senate supporting this action.