Bill Text: IL HR1172 | 2017-2018 | 100th General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Mourns the death of John McGovern.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2018-11-13 - Resolution Adopted [HR1172 Detail]
Download: Illinois-2017-HR1172-Introduced.html
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1 | HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION
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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
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10 | WHEREAS, Metra operates 691 weekday trains, stopping at 241 | ||||||
11 | stations on 11 rail lines in the Chicago region; and
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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
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17 | WHEREAS, These activities provide vital transit services | ||||||
18 | for residents of Illinois, Illinois commerce, and the nation; | ||||||
19 | and
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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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