Full Text of HJR0139 100th General Assembly
HJ0139 100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, Illinois and Chicago are known as the nation's | 3 | | rail hub, and pursuant to data provided by the Metropolitan | 4 | | Planning Council, the Chicago region serves as a national | 5 | | east-west gateway for six of the seven major Class I railroads | 6 | | that transport approximately 25 percent of all U.S. freight | 7 | | rail traffic and 44 percent of all U.S. intermodal "container" | 8 | | units, totaling more than 1.3 million loaded rail cars | 9 | | annually; and
| 10 | | WHEREAS, Metra operates 691 weekday trains, stopping at 241 | 11 | | stations on 11 rail lines in the Chicago region; and
| 12 | | WHEREAS, Amtrak operates a nationwide rail network, | 13 | | serving more than 500 destinations in 46 states, the District | 14 | | of Columbia, and three Canadian provinces on more than 21,400 | 15 | | miles of routes, with Chicago serving as a major hub for most | 16 | | of their interstate services; and
| 17 | | WHEREAS, These activities provide vital transit services | 18 | | for residents of Illinois, Illinois commerce, and the nation; | 19 | | and
| 20 | | WHEREAS, Actual and projected growth in rail freight, | 21 | | Metra, and Amtrak service continues to put pressure on existing |
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| 1 | | Illinois rail systems, often creating higher congestion and | 2 | | reduced safety when passengers and freight share the same rail | 3 | | lines; and
| 4 | | WHEREAS, The Illinois Department of Transportation | 5 | | participated in a nine-state planning effort that resulted in | 6 | | publication of the Midwest Regional Rail System (MWRRS) | 7 | | executive report in September 2004, which outlines steps to | 8 | | improve regional rail mobility and stimulate economic | 9 | | development at an estimated budget of $7.7 billion, and it is | 10 | | unclear what impact has been achieved; and
| 11 | | WHEREAS, The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) | 12 | | mandates a process to use either an Environmental Assessment or | 13 | | a more comprehensive Environmental Impact Statement to collect | 14 | | data, evaluate impacts, review alternatives, and propose | 15 | | project solutions; and
| 16 | | WHEREAS, One of the current rail projects being studied is | 17 | | an Environmental Assessment of proposed improvements to the | 18 | | Chicago-Milwaukee Intercity Passenger Rail Program; the | 19 | | improvements are estimated to cost $195 million plus the | 20 | | increased annual operating expenses of adding three daily round | 21 | | trips to the Amtrak Hiawatha service; and
| 22 | | WHEREAS, Several communities, including the Village of |
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| 1 | | Glenview and the City of Lake Forest, have expressed strong | 2 | | concerns about this Environmental Assessment's lack of data and | 3 | | missing analyses of potential impacts of and alternatives to | 4 | | freight train holding tracks, noise, vibrations, releases into | 5 | | the air to adjacent residential areas, hospital, schools, and | 6 | | rare nature preserves; and
| 7 | | WHEREAS, It is in the public's best interest to fully | 8 | | evaluate the benefits and impacts of rail projects in Illinois | 9 | | prior to seeking public funding and agency permitting for such | 10 | | projects; therefore, be it
| 11 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | 12 | | HUNDREDTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE SENATE | 13 | | CONCURRING HEREIN, That in accordance with the National | 14 | | Environmental Policy Act and in support of potentially impacted | 15 | | communities in Illinois, all proposed Illinois rail projects | 16 | | with new freight train holding tracks adjacent to residential | 17 | | areas, including the current Chicago-Milwaukee Intercity | 18 | | Passenger Rail Program described above, shall receive full | 19 | | Environmental Impact Statement reviews; and be it further
| 20 | | RESOLVED, That the Illinois Department of Transportation | 21 | | shall pursue options to eliminate or minimize the routing of | 22 | | bypass freight traffic through the Chicago metropolitan area, | 23 | | including prioritizing the review and study of rail bypass |
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| 1 | | systems around Chicago that would ensure coastal rail traffic | 2 | | not destined for Chicago could more efficiently bypass the | 3 | | Chicago region and significantly reduce the negative impacts of | 4 | | freight rail in the highest populated areas of Illinois; and be | 5 | | it further
| 6 | | RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be | 7 | | presented to the members of the Illinois Congressional | 8 | | Delegation and the Illinois Department of Transportation.
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