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1
SENATE JOINT 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 at Chicago found that
13an O'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
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, The extension of the Metra Electric line south
2from University Park through Will County to Kankakee has long
3been a transportation objective for the south suburbs; this
4high speed rail line would serve that market, bringing Kankakee
5County, Will County, and southern Cook County modern
6transportation access to Chicago and the southern part of the
7State; and
 
8    WHEREAS, The convention business is a major industry for
9Illinois' economy; any way that could improve the
10attractiveness of our convention spaces like McCormick Place to
11major shows is a key component to Illinois' prosperity; and
 
12    WHEREAS, Connecting McCormick Place, the continent's
13largest exhibition venue, directly to O'Hare International
14Airport, the nation's busiest airport, significantly enhances
15the attractiveness of Chicago to trade shows, as it allows
16visitors to avoid the chronically congested Kennedy Expressway
17with a direct train ride to the existing Metra station in
18McCormick Place; and
 
19    WHEREAS, O'Hare International Airport to downtown Chicago
20would serve as the key anchor in a statewide high speed rail
21line; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, Finding a way to connect the business traveler
2nodes of Aurora and Naperville with the high speed rail line to
3feed the network with the residents and business travelers
4around the I-88 corridor would be extremely helpful to creating
5a financially viable high speed line; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Supporting and building new technology companies
7is a key goal for creating more Illinois jobs; one of the
8world's greatest centers for cutting-edge research in
9technology and software is the University of Illinois at
10Urbana-Champaign, but Illinois has lost thousands of graduates
11to other states, which have created new technology companies
12worth tens of billions of dollars; and
 
13    WHEREAS, Connecting the University of Illinois at
14Urbana-Champaign to downtown Chicago via a 50 minute high-speed
15train ride is the best way to integrate the financial and
16business capital of Chicago with the intellectual and
17technological capital of Urbana-Champaign to support and
18create new billion-dollar technology businesses in Illinois;
19and
 
20    WHEREAS, Three Fortune 500 companies are in Downstate
21Illinois, Archer Daniels Midland in Decatur, Caterpillar, Inc.
22in Peoria, and State Farm Insurance Companies in Bloomington;
23providing a world-class high speed rail line from O'Hare to

 

 

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1downstate Illinois with an eventual connecting train service to
2other communities would significantly improve the entire
3State's business climate, particularly for high-level
4corporate executives who require convenient access to
5international flights; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Placing the St. Louis-area terminus at the East
7St. Louis Metrolink station would not only save a billion
8dollars by avoiding the need to build a new bridge over the
9Mississippi River, as passengers could simply take the existing
10Metrolink from East St. Louis into Missouri, it would also
11serve as a game-changer for East St. Louis, one of the State's
12most economically challenged communities; and
 
13    WHEREAS, Several nations have sent trade delegations to
14Illinois expressing sincere interest in exporting their high
15speed train systems to our State; several nations have also
16offered to help finance a portion of the capital construction
17costs, including France, China, and Japan; and
 
18    WHEREAS, To date, Illinois has been unable to take
19advantage of the interest from other nations in partially
20financing and constructing a high speed rail line, mainly due
21to a lack of planning; therefore, be it
 
22    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDREDTH GENERAL

 

 

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1ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
2CONCURRING HEREIN, that we urge Governor Rauner and the
3Illinois Department of Transportation to build upon the work of
4the 2013 high speed rail report and immediately task their
5existing consultants to prepare an investment-grade ridership
6analysis for distribution to interested parties around the
7world; and be it further
 
8    RESOLVED, That we urge Governor Rauner and the Illinois
9Department of Transportation to seek federal planning funds to
10help pay for this study and to consider all potential
11alternatives for a true high speed rail line that would
12complement all existing Amtrak services; and be it further
 
13    RESOLVED, That we urge all State agencies to provide any
14and all assistance to the City of Chicago in implementing this
15crucial transportation project; and be it further
 
16    RESOLVED, That we commend Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel for
17his commitment to building high speed train service between
18O'Hare International Airport and downtown Chicago and urge all
19State agencies to provide any and all assistance to the City of
20Chicago in implementing this crucial transportation project;
21and be it further
 
22    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.