(The following report by Richard Wronski appeared on the Chicago Tribune website on December 12.)
CHICAGO — The legislative deadlock over state funding for mass transit may jeopardize federal dollars for major commuter rail improvements in the Chicago region, two Illinois congressmen and the head of Metra warned Tuesday.
Illinois could lose up to $1.5 billion for the proposed expansion of Metra service, including the suburb-to-suburb STAR line; SouthEast Service to South Cook and Will Counties; and expansion of the Union Pacific Northwest and West lines into McHenry and DuPage Counties, U.S. Reps. Mark Kirk and Melissa Bean said.
The federal government has put these so-called New Start projects on hold for 30 to 45 days pending a resolution of the months-long transit funding stalemate in Springfield, Metra Executive Director Phil Pagano said.
Gov. Rod Blagojevich and top lawmakers have been deadlocked for months on legislation to provide additional funding for mass transit. Metra, the CTA and Pace will impose service cuts and fare hikes Jan. 20 without new money.
The Federal Transit Administration confirmed the projects are being frozen. “The FTA is waiting to see a reliable source of local funding,” spokesman Paul Griffo said. “Once that’s demonstrated, the projects would be ready for advancement.”
If Illinois does not come up with matching funds — anywhere from 20 to 50 percent — the FTA could re-allocate the federal money to other states, Kirk said.
“The bottom line is this: California, Florida [and] Texas do not suffer from this kind of political gridlock,” Kirk said. “Our inaction in Springfield could lead to a huge windfall for other states.”
The CTA and Pace also have New Start projects. But Kirk, a Republican from Highland Park, and Bean, a Democrat from Barrington, focused their concern on Metra’s plight. The Suburban Transportation Commission they created in April concluded that Illinois’ transit system “does not adequately address the needs of suburban communities, both in service and direct funding.”
Kirk warned state leaders “there is a federal deadline pending” and suggested they lock themselves in a room to negotiate. “They can either kill themselves or come out with a bipartisan solution,” he said.
The competition for scarce federal dollars is especially keen, and the representatives’ warnings were “not an idle threat,” said Michael McLaughlin, transportation director for the Metropolitan Planning Council, an independent non-profit planning organization.
The FTA is looking to Illinois to provide a “steady, stable stream of revenue” to match the federal dollars, McLaughlin said. “If we don’t get our act together, we won’t get any money at all.”