Reps hope all aboard for Belvidere Amtrak option

By Thomas V. Bona

BusinessRockford.com

Rockford and Belvidere officials plan to meet with their counterparts in Genoa and DeKalb County to hash out the best route for restored Amtrak service.

The Rockford-Belvidere group prefers a route that goes from Chicago through Belvidere to Rockford, while the Genoa group wants the old Black Hawk route that goes through their town en route to Rockford.

The Illinois Department of Transportation, which makes the ultimate decision, is awaiting the result of the talks, said George Weber, head of IDOT’s railroads bureau.

Either way, the route would continue through Rockford to Freeport, Galena and Dubuque, Iowa. It could start as early as November 2011.

A 2007 study by Amtrak said the Genoa route would cost $10 million less, be 15 minutes faster and draw 40 percent more riders than a Belvidere route.

A more recent study by Rockford-area leaders indicated that the cost of the routes could be within $1 million of each other and that the Belvidere route would be 20 minutes faster.

Moreover, the Belvidere route would lay the foundation for commuter rail service between Rockford and the Chicago suburbs on the same line years later.

Steve Ernst, executive director of the Rockford Metropolitan Agency for Planning, believes if his group can’t convince Genoa officials to support the Belvidere route, IDOT will likely go with the
Genoa route based on the Amtrak study. That would make it harder to also bring the aforementioned commuter rail service because there would be no state investment on the Belvidere line.

“The way I see it is it’s not a competition,” Ernst said. “What the elected officials and transportation professionals need to come to consensus on is what serves the long-term needs of the region better.”

DeKalb County officials feel a route through Genoa would benefit residents of DeKalb and Sycamore and Northern Illinois University students, staff and faculty.

Can common ground be reached?

“You never know. Certainly at this point we haven’t seen anything that changes our perspective,” said Joe Misurelli, Genoa city administrator. “We each have things that are important to us. I don’t know how that changes.”

Both sides say they’re willing to talk and consider each other’s needs.

Staff writer Thomas V. Bona may be contacted at 815-987-1343 or 
tbona@rrstar.com.

.

ON THE WEB
Sign petition for Amtrak service through Belvidere to Rockford
Northwest Illinois Blackhawk Express coalition
Amtrak: Thanks, but we still like our study
Thomas V. Bona's blog, The Passenger Seat

STORIES
Belvidere, Genoa studies square off (07/11/09)
Different spokes, different folks (07/11/09)
Potential riders can speak up for Amtrak (07/07/09)
Summit speaker: Area should embrace logistics hub ID (05/27/09)
State OKs Amtrak route through Belvidere (04/17/09)
Stimulus money could help revive Rockford's Amtrak service (03/26/09)
Rock River Valley leaders send wish list to Obama (01/06/09)

Loading commenting interface...