Peoria could be seeing a new mode of transportation that goes to Chicago with the involvement of Bradley and other local organizations.
On Feb. 1 in a University Communications email, students were asked to share their thoughts on a proposed Amtrak line to and from the city. The survey will reportedly be used by the Illinois Department of Transportation to understand potential travel patterns and to measure demand.
Bradley McMillan, a representative of Bradley University who is part of the train committee, shared that over 28,000 survey responses were recorded in just one week before University Communications officially sent the survey out.
“It shows that people are interested in this, and that’s encouraging,” McMillan said.
According to McMillan, the university’s involvement in the project was unusual. He said University President Stephen Standifird is looking to get involved in the Peoria community and is close with Mayor Rita Ali and former Congressman and Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood, both of whom are also part of the committee.
While there have been many leading the project, it isn’t guaranteed at the moment.
In a press conference on Jan. 25 with Peoria officials, they said that the process of financial planning for the project would begin after the results of the survey. Ali said that they would be looking for federal funding and grants.
McMillan said Ali and LaHood would propose the need for the railway in Washington D.C. in order to meet with Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg and the head of the Federal Railroad Association.
“They only want to put these passenger rail opportunities where there’s going to be demand,” McMillan said. “You have to show demand and prove that there’s demand for the service.”
The proposed route would stop from Peoria to LaSalle-Peru, Ottawa, Morris, Joliet and Chicago, along the retired Rock Island Line.
While the existing rails supported high speeds of 100 mph, the new train would most likely go around 80 mph. It would be classified as a “higher-speed rail” rather than a “high-speed rail.”
Besides the general interest in returning the rail, McMillan said that 50% of Bradley students are from the surrounding Chicago area. This means that students from Chicago could travel beyond a charter bus, car or plane.
“We think this would be a popular option for students to go back to their homes,” McMillan said. “They wouldn’t have to drive in traffic, and if you’ve ever been in an Amtrak train, it’s very comfortable.”
Along with avoiding traffic, it can be time made available for students to study or socialize on the train. McMillan suggested that the train could even help people save money on parking in Chicago.
The possibility of Amtrak being introduced has delighted students who are Chicago natives, such as freshman accounting major Zaria Hurdle.
“[I think] the Amtrak would be very beneficial for Bradley students,” Hurdle said. “I know many students who are from Chicago [who] might be in need of another form of transportation. The Amtrak [would] be helpful for me because it [would] take me right to the train station downtown, which is not that far from my house.”
The rail services could attract business and visitors to Peoria, give the city’s economy a potential boost and even make Bradley University seem a much more feasible option for Chicago students.
For now, the committee is looking to get as many individuals in Peoria and surrounding areas to share their thoughts to show that there’s a need for the Amtrak rail.
“We gotta put our best foot forward to get prioritized,” McMillan said.
