Preparations begin for Amtrak’s Lincoln Service Corridor improvements

February 14, 2001 Preparations for improvement of Union Pacific Railroad tracks used by Amtrak south of Springfield will prompt two daily Lincoln Service trains to originate and terminate in Springfield for 10 days, starting August 7. Alternate transportation will be provided to and from points south to St. Louis for Trains 303 & 304.

As announced on July 20
by Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn, construction will begin in early September on the
Chicago to St. Louis high-speed rail route. An agreement between the Illinois
Department of Transportation and Union Pacific will allow upgrades to be made
on an initial 90-mile segment of Union Pacific track to prepare it for
high-speed rail. The $98-million dollar project is funded through the federal
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and will support an estimated 900 jobs.

Additional temporary
changes in Amtrak service to and from Springfield will be announced later this
month, before the start of track improvements from south of Springfield to
north of Alton. These track upgrades and others north of Springfield will
include the installation of new, high-speed rail and concrete ties. This work
is expected to be complete by year’s end.

Illinois DOT has been a
partner of Amtrak for nearly 39 years and has made significant progress on the
Chicago-St. Louis Lincoln Service Corridor in cooperation with the UP, which
owns the right-of-way south of Joliet and operates rail freight services on the
line. Extensive rehabilitation of the track and signal systems has been
performed between Springfield and Dwight, but this will be the first major
improvement between Springfield and Alton.

In January, the U.S.
Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration awarded $1.2
billion in ARRA funds for high-speed passenger rail to Illinois – one of only three
states to receive an award of more than $1 billion. Illinois was among 31
states chosen to receive a total of $8 billion that President Obama and
Congress made available for high-speed passenger rail. Illinois DOT estimates
federal investment in high-speed rail is expected to create 6,000 jobs in the
state.

Illinois’ high-speed rail
signature route, Chicago to St. Louis, received $1.1 billion for corridor
improvements. These improvements will allow Amtrak Lincoln Service trains to
operate at speeds up to 110 mph and include: new locomotives and passenger cars,
rebuilding of track, additional highway-rail grade crossing active warning
devices, and implementation of state-of-the-art safety technology.

Amtrak and Illinois DOT
will announce forthcoming temporary service changes and provide reports via the
state’s Amtrak Illinois website. Passenger Service Notices will be posted at
stations and will be displayed as part of the booking process on Amtrak.com.