HR1239 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR1239 LRB098 22069 GRL 60940 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives wish to congratulate the members of the DuPage Railroad Safety Council on the occasion of the organization's 20th anniversary of railroad safety advocacy; and

WHEREAS, The DuPage Railroad Safety Council was founded on April 30, 1994 as an outgrowth of a Railroad Safety Conference called by the Chairman of the DuPage County Board; the organization is made up of railroad officials, government officials, engineers, educators, and private citizens who have a deep concern for railroad safety and seek to prevent deaths and injuries at railroad crossings and along railways; and

WHEREAS, Since its founding, the DuPage Railroad Safety Council has met regularly to examine ways to heighten awareness and improve safety conditions at railroad crossings and to work with civic and railroad leaders to stop preventable accidents along railroad right of ways; and

WHEREAS, The DuPage Railroad Safety Council performs many public functions to heighten awareness of railroad safety; the organization holds OL presentations at many grade and high schools throughout DuPage County and for many Girl and Boy Scout troops; it has created Railroad Safety video tapes for driver's education classes, with over 4,000 copies distributed; it has conducted many "station blitzes", where the organization, in conjunction with the Railroad, has provided OL videos, posters, and flyers discussing rail safety at train stations in the area; the organization helped influence the 1996 law to fine $500 for those vehicles or pedestrians who cross the tracks with warning signals activated and obtained governmental funding and approval to conduct a trial of video enforcement at three locations in DuPage County as a trial of technology and effectiveness; the organization has also participated in local and national news broadcasts, cable documentaries, and many print articles regarding rail safety and to inform the Chicago area of the Council's work; and

WHEREAS, The DuPage Railroad Safety Council's efforts in education and enforcement have lowered the rail/highway incident rate for the State of Illinois and have greatly improved railroad awareness among the State's citizens; and

WHEREAS, The DuPage Railroad Safety Council will host a celebration of the organization's 20th anniversary on August 7, 2014 at the Chicago History Museum; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate the members of the DuPage Railroad Safety Council on the occasion of the organization's 20th anniversary and wish them continued success and happiness in the future; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the DuPage Railroad Safety Council as a symbol of our esteem and respect.