Rail concerns ‘across the board’ at Springfield, Ill., open house

February 14, 2001 The first public open house to discuss the Springfield rail corridor study drew more than 220 people to the Prairie Capital Convention Center April 20, the State Journal-Register reports. City and Sangamon County officials pushed for the study after the Illinois Department of Transportation concluded the Union Pacific/Third Street line would be the best route for high-speed passenger trains between Chicago and St. Louis. Local officials contend the analysis will find 10th Street is a better alternative for consolidated train traffic, possibly also including trains that now use 19th Street.

The study, expected to cost
$4 million, is being paid for by the Illinois Department of Transportation.
Findings are due in the spring of 2011.

Jim Moll, project manager
for Hanson Professional Services, said issues raised by those who attended were
"scattered across the board."

"What we’re hearing from
people is they’re concerned," he said. "They’re concerned that there’s going to
be more trains through Springfield, they’re concerned with noise and vibrations
and the delays that are going to result from that. The problem is, it’s tough
to find something that’s going to work for everybody."

Three questions were posed
to attendees, including the following:

• What desires do you have
for the improvement and/or redevelopment of the railroad corridors and their
surrounding neighborhoods?

• What concerns do you have
about increasing rail traffic near where you live, work and play?

• What values do you think
should inform the study team’s decision-making as it determines how best to
accommodate increasing rail traffic through Springfield?

Attendees were asked to
specify whether their answers pertained to the Third Street, 10th Street or
19th Street corridors, or to the entire city.

Preston and Joanne Hott,
who live in the 1100 block of South Fourth Street, said putting high-speed rail
on the Third Street corridor would mean trains would whiz past their home. Even
though Tuesday’s public forum didn’t answer the Hotts’ questions, they said it
was a good introduction to the study’s preliminary findings.

"I thought the presentation,
the video that we saw, was really well done," Preston Hott said.

Joanne Hott said she’s
concerned about speed limits, noise, vibration, property values, cross-street
traffic, issues pertaining to emergency vehicle travel and the prospects that
constant train traffic will block off Springfield’s medical communities,
historic sites and downtown business.

"How can they justify
putting this great schism in the middle of our fair city, blocking off the
medical area, the business, the historic sites?" she asked. "If someone at the
Lincoln Museum downtown wants to get to Oak Ridge Cemetery to visit Lincoln’s
tomb, how are you going to explain that?"

Gay Davidson said the open
house provided a more comprehensive look at the high-speed rail issue than
previous public meetings.

"I didn’t know how much
impact it would have on each of the neighborhoods and each of the corridors,"
she said. "It was very helpful in getting a visual sense of it, how many
buildings were close and things like that."

Davidson said she doesn’t
believe the study will consider the possibility of redirecting train travel
outside the city.

"I think that might be
better, because I think any of these (options) are going to be detrimental to
the city," she said.