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1
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, The State of Illinois is the primary governmental
3 entity responsible for the public safety and welfare of its
4 citizenry; and
 
5     WHEREAS, The September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the
6 U.S. prompted the nation to take additional actions to protect
7 our key public facilities, infrastructure, and private assets;
8 and
 
9     WHEREAS, The United States Congress created the Homeland
10 Security Department in order to better coordinate the nation's
11 response to terrorism and natural disasters, and this federal
12 department allocates funds annually under the United States
13 Homeland Security Act of 2002; and
 
14     WHEREAS, The Governor of the State of Illinois has
15 allocated in fiscal year 2006 funds for various transit
16 agencies and local governments to enhance homeland security;
17 and
 
18     WHEREAS, Terrorists around the globe have targeted major
19 urban public transit systems as strategic targets for their
20 attacks; and
 
21     WHEREAS, The CTA operates the nation's second largest
22 public transportation system, serving the city of Chicago and
23 40 surrounding suburbs, with nearly 1.5 million rides taken by
24 the public on the CTA on an average weekday; and
 
25     WHEREAS, The CTA has approximately 2,000 buses that operate
26 over 153 routes and 2,273 route miles, providing about 1
27 million passenger trips a day and serving more than 12,000
28 posted bus stops; while CTA's 1,190 rapid transit cars operate
29 over eight routes and 222 miles of track, providing

 

 

HJ0145 - 2 - LRB094 21855 DRH 60286 r

1 approximately 500,000 customer trips each day at 144 stations;
2 and
 
3     WHEREAS, Chicago is one of the few cities in the world that
4 provide rapid transit service to two major airports; and
 
5     WHEREAS, The State of Illinois, the County of Cook, and the
6 City of Chicago recognize the CTA as one of the city's and the
7 region's major public assets and a high priority for enhanced
8 protection as part of the city's homeland security, disaster,
9 and terrorist response planning; and
 
10     WHEREAS, Two recent derailments of CTA rapid transit
11 trains, along with the 2006 Metra Electric derailment,
12 underscored the potential vulnerability of transit riders and
13 our public transportation system to disasters; therefore, be it
 
14     RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
15 NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE
16 SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that we support the call for disaster
17 relief and the restoration of conductors along key portions of
18 the CTA's Rapid Transit Systems for the purpose of securing
19 public transportation as a vital public asset; and be it
20 further
 
21     RESOLVED, That a separate comprehensive system shall be
22 established to provide security for mass transit systems
23 statewide; and be it further
 
24     RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
25 delivered to the Governor, the President of the Cook County
26 Board, and the Mayor of Chicago.