(The following story by Kurt Erickson appeared on the Bloomington Pantagraph website on August 31, 2009.)
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — The number of trains running between Chicago and St. Louis could more than triple in the coming years, raising questions about how local communities will deal with the increased rail traffic.
The line, owned by the Union Pacific railroad, currently has a dozen freight and passenger trains plying the north-south route on a daily basis.
Long-term plans show that number could grow to 40 trains a day rolling through places like Bloomington, Normal, Pontiac and Lincoln, UP spokesman Mark Davis said Monday.
Many local officials haven’t been briefed on the potential changes.
“This is the first I’ve heard of it,” Pontiac City Manager Bob Karls said Monday.
Davis said the company is predicting the increases as part of the planning for transforming the line into a high-speed passenger rail link between Chicago and St. Louis.
UP freight trains will continue to share the corridor with faster Amtrak trains under a proposal submitted to the federal government by the Illinois Department of Transportation.
“We want to make sure the corridor has enough capacity,” Davis said.
Most of the increase would come from adding more Amtrak service. But, UP also is predicting an increase in the amount of freight traffic, from four trains a day up to 18.
“A lot of things have to happen for the 18 to happen on the freight side,” Davis said.
For example, some of the increase could occur because of the opening of a freight transfer facility in Joliet, he said.
The increase could mean headaches for motorists trying to cross tracks in communities up and down the line. It also could delay emergency vehicles when crossings are blocked.
“Emergency response might be a concern,” said Lincoln Mayor Keith Snyder.
But, Snyder added, the added rail traffic may not be a major problem if it is largely made up of shorter passenger trains and freight trains hauling shipping containers.
“I am not too concerned about it from what I have heard,” Snyder said.
Normal Mayor Chris Koos said officials haven’t been formally briefed on the possible changes.
But, he acknowledged that an increase could mean some adjustments in the community.
“To me, the question is how big are the trains and what time will they come through,” Koos said.
In Springfield, the increased traffic has officials looking at re-routing trains to a track that doesn’t run through the center of the city.
On Wednesday, U.S. Rep. Debbie Halvorson, a Democrat from Crete, will host a meeting in Normal to discuss high-speed rail in Illinois.
Among those expected to attend the forum are rail executives, local, state and federal officials, and transportation experts.
“Bringing high speed rail to Illinois and right here through Normal would mean a great boost of economic development and increased transportation options for all who live here. We need to bring everyone together to talk about how we can make this a reality,” Halvorson said in a prepared statement.
The 9:45 a.m. meeting is at the Children’s Discovery Museum, 101 E. Beaufort St., Normal.