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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, Illinois' economy depends on a robust and
3efficient transportation network; and
 
4    WHEREAS, The sheer size of our State, with automobile
5travel from the south to the north taking as much as 6 hours,
6leaves our cities and regions relatively disconnected from each
7other, slowing our economic growth; and
 
8    WHEREAS, One major transportation project can unite the
9entire State's economy, linking together business centers and
10generating efficiencies and economic growth; and
 
11    WHEREAS, An Illinois Department of Transportation study
12completed by the University of Illinois found that an
13O'Hare-Union Station-Champaign-Springfield-St. Louis with a
14Champaign-Indianapolis branch high speed rail line would
15generate an operating surplus that would require no annual
16subsidy; and
 
17    WHEREAS, The next steps in the planning process for a
18statewide high speed rail line are an investment grade
19ridership analysis to allow potential private financing
20entities to assess the suitability of the high speed rail line
21for investment and a Tier One Environmental Impact Statement to

 

 

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1qualify the project for federal funds; and
 
2    WHEREAS, The extension of the Metra Electric line south
3from University Park through Will County to Kankakee has long
4been a transportation objective for the south suburbs; this
5high speed rail line would serve that market, bringing Kankakee
6County, Will County, and southern Cook County modern
7transportation access to Chicago and the southern part of the
8State; and
 
9    WHEREAS, The State-owned land for the planned South
10Suburban Airport becomes far more valuable if a high speed
11train station is built on that site and was incorporated with
12any future airport to be developed there, leveraging the
13State's existing investment in the South Suburban Airport; and
 
14    WHEREAS, Prior to the development of viable high speed rail
15connections, there are other infrastructure investments in the
16South Cook, Will County, and Kankakee County regions that would
17create a new transportation network and spur economic growth;
18nearly a million people live in South Cook, Will County, and
19Kankakee County; the South East Service Line, the Illiana
20Expressway, and the South Suburban Airport are important
21transportation adjuncts which would highlight multi-modal
22investments and increase the viability for Chicago's
23Southland; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, The convention business is a major industry for
2Illinois' economy; any way that could improve the
3attractiveness of our convention spaces like McCormick Place to
4major shows is a key component to Illinois' prosperity; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Connecting McCormick Place, the continent's
6largest exhibition venue, directly to O'Hare International
7Airport, the nation's busiest airport, significantly enhances
8the attractiveness of Chicago to trade shows, as it allows
9visitors to avoid the chronically congested Kennedy Expressway
10with a direct train ride to the existing Metra station in
11McCormick Place; and
 
12    WHEREAS, O'Hare International Airport to downtown Chicago
13would serve as the key anchor in a statewide high speed rail
14line; and
 
15    WHEREAS, Supporting and building new technology companies
16is a key goal for creating more Illinois jobs; one of the
17world's greatest centers for cutting-edge research in
18technology and software is the University of Illinois at
19Urbana-Champaign, but Illinois has lost thousands of graduates
20to other states, which have created new technology companies
21worth tens of billions of dollars; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, Connecting the University of Illinois at
2Urbana-Champaign to downtown Chicago via a 50 minute high-speed
3train ride is the best way to integrate the financial and
4business capital of Chicago with the intellectual and
5technological capital of Urbana-Champaign to support and
6create new billion-dollar technology businesses in Illinois;
7and
 
8    WHEREAS, Three Fortune 500 companies are in Downstate
9Illinois, Archer Daniels Midland in Decatur, Caterpillar, Inc.
10in Peoria, and State Farm Insurance Companies in Bloomington;
11providing a world-class high speed rail line from O'Hare to
12downstate Illinois with an eventual connecting train service to
13other communities would significantly improve the entire
14State's business climate, particularly for high-level
15corporate executives who require convenient access to
16international flights; and
 
17    WHEREAS, Placing the St. Louis-area terminus at the East
18St. Louis Metrolink station would not only save a billion
19dollars by avoiding the need to build a new bridge over the
20Mississippi River, as passengers could simply take the existing
21Metrolink from East St. Louis into Missouri, it would also
22serve as a game-changer for East St. Louis, one of the State's
23most challenged communities; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, Several nations have sent trade delegations to
2Illinois expressing sincere interest in exporting their high
3speed train systems to our State; several nations have also
4offered to help finance a portion of the capital construction
5costs, including France, China, and Japan; and
 
6    WHEREAS, To date, Illinois has been unable to take
7advantage of the interest from other nations in partially
8financing and constructing a high speed rail line, mainly due
9to a lack of planning; therefore, be it
 
10    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
11NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we
12urge Governor Rauner and the Illinois Department of
13Transportation to build upon the work of the 2013 high speed
14rail report and immediately task their existing consultants to
15prepare an investment-grade ridership analysis for
16distribution to interested parties around the world; and be it
17further
 
18    RESOLVED, That we urge Governor Rauner and the Illinois
19Department of Transportation to concurrently task their
20existing consultants to prepare as expeditiously as possible
21the Tier One Environmental Impact Statement to qualify the high
22speed rail project for federal funds and to seek federal
23planning funds to help pay for this study; and be it further
 

 

 

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1    RESOLVED, That we urge all State agencies to provide any
2and all assistance to the City of Chicago in implementing this
3crucial transportation project; and be it further
 
4    RESOLVED, That we commend Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel for
5his commitment to building high speed train service between
6O'Hare International Airport and downtown Chicago and urge all
7State agencies to provide any and all assistance to the City of
8Chicago in implementing this crucial transportation project;
9and be it further
 
10    RESOLVED, That we commend the Mayors and Village
11Presidents, Council of Governments, Chambers of Commerce, and
12south suburban legislators for their planning and foresight
13with projects like the proposed SouthEast Service Line and
14their commitment to high speed rail as a necessary part of
15their regional development plan; and be it further
 
16    RESOLVED, That we call upon Congress to return to their
17previous practice in Fiscal Year 2010 of appropriating $2.5
18billion in the annual federal budget for capital grants to
19states for high speed rail projects in order to help fund this
20high speed rail project; and be it further
 
21    RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be

 

 

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1delivered to the Governor, the Illinois Secretary of
2Transportation, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, and the members of
3the Illinois congressional delegation.