Influx of funding means new Amtrak trains, updates for aged rail bridges, repair shops in region
Despite outdated infrastructure, an aging fleet and related cancellations, Amtrak is growing in popularity with Chicagoans and suburbanites.
Demand for train trips from Chicago’s Union Station outpaced capacity, a recent DePaul University study found.
Some relief is in sight with an influx of federal funds for new trains and system repairs, officials announced Friday.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on Friday outlined a funding program that includes $2 billion for new Amtrak trainsets.
Among the Amtrak lines slated for updated locomotives and cars are the Hiawatha between Chicago and Milwaukee, the Illinois Zephyr between Chicago and Quincy, and the Illini/Saluki between Chicago and Carbondale.
The grants will allow Amtrak to purchase up to 43 trainsets to “help replace legacy equipment that is at the end of its service life,” and grow the railroad’s fleet to “enable additional locally-sponsored routes,” railroad officials said.
Also Friday, lawmakers touted nearly $700 million in federal funding for Amtrak projects.
Regional benefits from an over $696 million Federal Railroad Administration grant include shifting some train maintenance from Amtrak’s 14th Street Yard, south of Union Station, to a closer and larger Canal Street facility, currently owned by Union Pacific Railroad.
The change will improve service and on-time performance by providing a modern repair and maintenance shop, officials said.
Sen. Dick Durbin, who has pushed for increased funding to upgrade Union Station, said the “federal investment into Chicago’s Amtrak facilities and infrastructure reflects the city’s status as a thriving transportation hub,” in a statement.
Other funds will repair and replace antique viaducts, bridges and other structures near Union Station, such as the 110-year-old South Branch Bridge over the Chicago River.
The revenue boost comes at a crucial time, noted U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley, who cited multiple “damaged bridges in the region that are long past the need for repair.”
mpyke@dailyherald.com