High-speed rail
continued from page 3

crossings being delayed 1.67 times an hour for 8.5 minutes per hour, for a total of 3.4 hours per day. If it were 60 trains a day, delays would be 5 hours per day. The study also noted that a 50-car train would be more than a half-mile long, stretching from Capitol to Carpenter.

Even if overpasses were built at a few crossings to avoid some of the delays, the distance of up to two blocks on either side of the crossing needed for the gradual slope, would result in large areas being virtually landlocked.

Mayor Tim Davlin and County Board Chairman Andy Van Meter on Aug. 20 wrote to the Federal Railroad Administration requesting a new Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) since the last one in 2003 is completely outdated. The old EIS only considered Third St.; it did not consider doubletracking and it only considered eight highspeed trains a day (and no freight trains).

The letter asks that the reevaluation review the Third and 10th St. tracks and include a comparative cost/benefit analysis.

Such a study should be done, and public input should be sought before billions of our own federal tax dollars are poured into this project. If you agree, let Sen. Richard Durbin, Gov. Pat Quinn and IDOT Secretary Gary Hannig know. The start of October is the deadline for the state to get its final request to the federal government, so there’s not much time left.

Attorney Sam Cahnman is alderman of Ward 5.