HR0133 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0133 LRB098 11267 MST 42350 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Tourism is a crucial component of the Illinois economy; and

WHEREAS, Chicago tourism is the largest source of tourism in Illinois; and

WHEREAS, It is an established State policy to support tourism for economic development, particularly to Chicago where the greatest potential economic impact for the State can be enjoyed; and

WHEREAS, Choose Chicago has recently announced an audacious goal of 75 million annual visitors to Chicago in order to dramatically increase the economic impact of tourism; and

WHEREAS, It is in the interest of the entire State of Illinois to help reach that goal of 75 million annual visitors to Chicago; and

WHEREAS, Increasing visitors to Chicago has a secondary benefit of exposing those visitors to potential trips throughout Illinois; and

WHEREAS, Choose Chicago is currently conducting a public discussion on innovative methods to hit the goal of 75 million annual visitors to Chicago; and

WHEREAS, Most tourists to Illinois come from the midwest as the top 5 states providing visitors to Illinois in 2011 were Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Missouri, according to the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity's 2011 Economic Impact of Tourism report; and

WHEREAS, Illinois hosted 93.3 million visitors in 2011, a 10% increase over 2010, fueled by an 11.8% increase in leisure travel according to the same report; and

WHEREAS, The most likely market for additional tourists coming to Chicago is the 500 mile radius around Chicago in the midwest; and

WHEREAS, Many smaller communities in the 500 mile radius around Chicago in the midwest do not have access to affordable, frequent, or convenient flights to Chicago, either because there isn't a nearby airport or because the flights from their airport are not affordable, frequent, or convenient; and

WHEREAS, Driving more than 100 miles can be very inconvenient, particularly due to the relatively high cost of parking in Chicago (especially compared to the low or no-cost for parking in much of the midwest); and

WHEREAS, The State of Illinois has been a leader in investing in Amtrak to provide more intercity passenger train service, doubling the frequency of round-trips in 2006 and investing State funds in improving the infrastructure of the Saint Louis-Springfield-Normal-Joliet-Chicago line; and

WHEREAS, Ridership on Amtrak service has broken records every year for the last 5 years; and

WHEREAS, A majority of Amtrak riders on weekends, and a significant amount on weekdays, are not business travelers but are rather leisure travelers or traveling to visit family or friends according to a State-authored 2011 survey of passengers aboard the Milwaukee-Chicago Amtrak Hiawatha service; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we fully support the goal of 75 million annual visitors to Chicago; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we call attention to the crucial role that transportation plays in bringing these new tourists to Chicago from, primarily, the rest of the midwest; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the easiest way to get tourists from the midwest to visit Chicago is to make it easier for tourists from the midwest to get to Chicago; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we call upon all other stakeholders in the tourism economy to recognize that offering more affordable, frequent, and convenient train travel throughout the midwest to Chicago is a crucial strategy to reach our goal of 75 million annual visitors to Chicago.