SR0772 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR0772 LRB097 21402 GRL 69378 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Many State-supported passenger trains in Illinois currently are operating at full capacity; and

WHEREAS, Passenger train demand has doubled in the last 5 years and continues to grow; and

WHEREAS, The federal government has provided Illinois and the Midwest states with capital grants to acquire new "Next-Generation" passenger trains; and

WHEREAS, The "Next-Generation" train order is designed to replace, not supplement, the number of trains in service; and

WHEREAS, The State of Illinois will not be able to accommodate increased ridership solely through the use of "Next-Generation" trains; and

WHEREAS, Federal law has mandated that states shall begin to make capital payments for trains in service as of October 2013; and

WHEREAS, The State of Illinois' capital payments can favor the continued growth and reduced cost of its State-supported passenger trains; and

WHEREAS, The State of Illinois can increase its ridership capacity by directing these capital payments to high-speed, high-capacity trains that are interoperable with the State's "Next-Generation" train specification to supplement "Next-Generation" trains; and

WHEREAS, The State of Illinois may offset the capital payments for these trains by selling more tickets made available by the greater number of seats on these trains; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that in order to address the above capacity and cost issues, the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) shall develop a strategy to acquire additional passenger railcars in advance of the Next Generation deliveries and shall deliver an action plan to implement this strategy; and be it further

RESOLVED, That any trains used to supplement the current fleet must be able to operate at speeds of 110 MPH, must have a high-capacity of over 72 seats per coach, must be interoperable with the State's "Next-Generation" train specification, and must be delivered in advance of the receipt of the State's "Next-Generation" trains; and be it further

RESOLVED, That IDOT shall deliver the action plan in writing no later than 30 days from adoption of this resolution to the members of the Illinois Senate, the Governor of the State of Illinois, the Illinois Secretary of Transportation, the Illinois Director of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, and the Director of the Governor's Office of Management and Budget.