Illinois officials seek $872 million in federal tax funds for Chicago transportation hub

[August 04, 2023]  By Andrew Hensel | The Center Square

(The Center Square) – Illinois is seeking more than $870 million in federal taxpayer funding for a railway project that would have its hub in Chicago and expanded rails to other Midwestern states.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and other state and local officials are seeking the help of federal funding for the Chicago Hub Improvement Program, a proposed series of projects that will cost taxpayers about $1.1 billion. The state is seeking a $872.8 million grant from the Federal Railroad Administration's Federal and State Partnership Program for the project to make Chicago's Union Station the central hub for an expanded railway traveling throughout the Midwest.

Pritzker says the Midwest deserves the project and called on federal officials to release taxpayer funds.

"The Chicago Hub Improvement Program is an opportunity for new federal infrastructure funding to catalyze the rail system this region deserves," Pritzker said. "This proposal would not only make much-needed improvements to Union Station and existing rail lines throughout Illinois and into Michigan, it would unlock a vast system of new and expanded passenger rail services throughout the Midwest, with Chicago's Union Station serving as the hub."

Pritzker said Illinois is the transportation capital of the United States.

"We were at the center of the nation's transportation system, in part because we are the most important rail hub in America," Pritzker said. "The Chicago Hub Improvement Program is designed to modernize all of that."

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker during a news conference in Chicago - Illinois.gov

Johnson spoke of the impact on the city.

"Chicago is one of the most important railroad hubs in the nation, and we must continue to strengthen and modernize our transit system," said Johnson. "So I join the voices calling on the U.S. Department of Transportation to fund the Chicago Hub Improvement Program, which would significantly renovate and improve intercity, commuter and freight railways to be greener, cleaner and more efficient."

The projects aim to expand capacity, eliminate bottlenecks, and improve air quality, accessibility, reliability and customer experience for more than 30 million passengers annually and would work towards enhancing platforms, upgrading the concourse and increasing capacity for both Amtrak and Metra.

Johnson said the project benefits not only Chicago but the entire Midwest.

"We are working in concert to bring about the type of transformation that the people of Chicago, the state of Illinois, the entire region and this nation needs," Johnson said.

According to a state news release, more than half of all the country's long-distance rides begin or end at Chicago's Union Station.