Agency seeks to set Chicago-area transportation priorities for next 30 years

February 14, 2001 The Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning, or CMAP, has unveiled a transportation wish list that has the Illinois 53 extension and its companion project, the Illinois 120 corridor, at the top.  

The roster of projects
highlights the little-known agency’s big-picture comprehensive plan, Go to
2040, which outlines a vision for the next 30 years and sets priorities for the
seven-county region, including Kendall County.

The 400-page document also
recommends fundamental changes in the way Chicagoans pay for their highways and
mass transit system, including higher gasoline taxes and new user fees to
combat congestion.

The increases are needed
because the days of funding windfalls from Washington and Springfield are over,
said Randy Blankenhorn, CMAP’s executive director.

"We know the (funding)
resources just aren’t there to do everything there is to do," Blankenhorn
said. "We have to invest what we have more wisely and focus on improving
the economy and the environment."

Whereas legendary Chicago
planner Daniel Burnham is credited with the famous quote, "Make no little
plans. They have no magic …," the message from Go to 2040 seems to be:
"Make no big plans. We have no money."

Instead of backing
multibillion-dollar projects such as the proposed suburb-to-suburb Metra STAR
Line and the outer-ring Prairie Parkway in Kane and Kendall counties, CMAP sets
more modest goals, such as completing the Elgin-O’Hare Expressway and building
a western bypass around O’Hare International Airport.

The plan also says the
CTA’s Red Line should be extended south from 95th Street to 130th Street and a
transportation center should be put in the West Loop to improve transfers among
rapid transit, buses and all types of rail services.

Other recommendations include
adding lanes to expressways and improving several Metra and transit lines.

All of the projects have
been proposed for years, but Go to 2040 seeks to put them in line.

"Funds for
transportation need to be allocated more wisely, using performance-driven
criteria rather than arbitrary formulas," the plan notes. "Expensive
new capacity projects should be built only if they yield benefits that outweigh
their costs."

CMAP says Go to 2040’s
recommended projects have been evaluated based on how much they promote
economic growth and reduce congestion and how likely they are to be funded. It’s
not quite a winners-and-losers list because none of the projects has guaranteed
funding. But some have a better chance than others.

The backbone of the Chicago
region is freight railroading, and Go to 2040 calls on the federal government
to develop a strategy to address freight issues. The plan also calls for the
full funding and implementation of the Chicago Region Environmental and
Transportation Efficiency program. CREATE is a public-private effort to reduce
bottlenecks and raise train speeds.

Go to 2040 isn’t just about
transportation. Much of the document focuses on other issues, including land,
water use and conservation; education and workforce development; and government
and tax policy. The plan is available at cmap.illinois.gov.

It needs final approval in
October from CMAP’s board of directors, made up of representatives from the
seven-county area. Then comes the task of implementing the plan’s
recommendations, which Blankenhorn acknowledged would be challenging.

Potential difficulties
include convincing the public of the need to pay higher user fees for a better
highway system and improved mass transit. Political opposition to raising taxes
is expected.

"These are tough
decisions, and there will be political issues with any of our policy recommendations,"
Blankenhorn said. "We have to educate public officials about why it’s in
their best interest to do these things. Part of CMAP’s role is to lead these
discussions."