(The following article by Karen Shoffner was posted on the Pioneer Press’s website on June 19.)
CHICAGO — Metra’s knack for getting federal dollars for transit projects will come in handy as it asks the federal government to smile on its STAR Line.
On June 5, the Regional Transportation Authority board approved plans for a 55-mile Metra route that will link more than100 communities, from O’Hare International Airport to Joliet. The Suburban Transit Access Route, or STAR Line, is projected to cost about $1.1 billion.
David Loveday, RTA director of communications, said Metra’s past success in getting federal approval for its projects worked in its favor when the RTA board voted 12-0 to endorse the STAR Line.
Strong history
“They have a strong history of doing this. That’s why we picked them. They have a history of getting federal funding for projects like this,” he said.
The next steps for Metra include doing a detailed analysis of the project, including its feasibility and environmental impact.
In the meantime, the Congressional delegation from Illinois will work to get the project authorized in the federal transportation bill up for renewal this year. Lawmakers are scheduled to re-authorize the six-year bill later this year. Inclusion gives the project a better chance of getting federal money, but it’s not a guarantee. It will compete with several hundred other transit projects from around the country for federal funding.
But U.S. Rep. William Lipinski, D-3rd, is confident the project will get funding.
“Metra’s had a good track record in getting projects funded. I don’t see any reason why this shouldn’t be funded,” he said.
Lipinski is the ranking Democrat on the House Highways and Transit Subcommittee.
Metra’s plan for improving and expanding public transportation will allow a new transit pattern to emerge, said Larry Bury, transportation director of the Northwest Municipal Conference. Options offered by Metra and the CTA now are focused on moving people into and out of Chicago. The Metra plan recognizes that many people live and work in the suburbs now.
“It’s a brand new dynamic of getting people from their home in one suburb to their job in the next. If you live in Naperville and work in Hoffman Estates or live in West Chicago and work in Elk Grove, this line will address that issue,” Bury said.
The northwest portion of the proposed STAR Line will run along the Northwest Tollway, from O’Hare to Prairie Stone in Hoffman Estates, and is about 21 miles long. From Prairie Stone, the line then continues south along the EJ&E (Elgin, Joliet & Eastern) line through Elgin, West Chicago, Aurora, Naperville, Plainfield and Joliet. Local officials have said the fact that the line also runs south to Joliet, thus touching more communities, will garner more support from members of Illinois’ Congressional delegation for the project.
Stops
Potential stops along the Northwest Tollway are in Des Plaines at Elmhurst Road, in Elk Grove Village at Busse Road, in Arlington Heights at Arlington Heights Road, a Golf Road stop in Rolling Meadows, two stops in Schaumburg at IKEA and Roselle Road, and three stops in Hoffman Estates at Barrington Road, Prairie Stone and Golf Road.
The Northwest Council of Mayors has pledged about $5 million per station location, which amounts to a total cost for station construction, depending on how many stations are built, of between $50 to $60 million, Bury said, and added that that’s about 10 percent of the total project cost.
Metra is proposing to use self-propelled diesel rail cars on the STAR Line. The cars would carry 100 passengers each. It will be at least 10 years before anyone can take the first ride on the STAR Line.