SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Gov. JB Pritzker joined the Illinois Department of Transportation and labor, legislative and local leaders Wednesday in announcing a $20.7 billion plan to improve Illinois’ roads and bridges over the next six years.
The commitment to infrastructure, fueled by the bipartisan Rebuild Illinois capital plan, will reinforce the state's status as a transportation hub and create thousands of jobs. The plan builds on significant infrastructure investment over the last two years.
The governor also announced the return of full Amtrak service in Illinois beginning July 19, now that more than 4.9 million Illinoisans are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and 64% of residents age 18 and over have received at least one dose.
Following CDC guidance, face masks are still required on public transit, including Amtrak trains.
“Rebuild Illinois is about investing for the future,” Pritzker said.
The multiyear plan will reconstruct over 2,700 more miles of roads and nearly 8 million square feet of bridges, bolstering the pandemic recovery in another way, Pritzker said.
Highway improvement program
The fiscal-year 2022-27 Proposed Highway Improvement Program would improve 2,779 miles of roads and 7.9 million square feet of bridge deck. Of the $20.7 billion allocated over the six years of the program, $3.32 billion has been set aside for the upcoming fiscal year.
A partial breakdown of the plan's funds:
- $5.79 billion for highway reconstruction and preservation
- $4.82 billion for bridge improvements
- $2.59 billion for strategic expansion
- $1.43 billion for system support such as engineering and land acquisition
- $1.21 billion for safety and system modernizations
“Under the governor’s leadership, we are continuing to build and sustain infrastructure that gives Illinois its competitive edge and strengthens our status as the transportation hub of North America,” said Acting Illinois Transportation Secretary Omer Osman. “This latest multiyear program means we will keep making historic improvements in our transportation system, just as we have throughout the pandemic.”
The program will create and support hundreds of thousands of jobs over the next six years for Illinois residents.
“This financial commitment is not just about streets and highways or roads and bridges,” said Sen. Doris Turner (D-Springfield). “It is invigorating communities, spurring economic development, and putting people to work.”
Passed in 2019, Pritzker’s bipartisan Rebuild Illinois plan promotes economic growth by investing a total of $33.2 billion into the state’s aging transportation system.
Resuming Amtrak service
With the number of positive COVID-19 cases decreasing and the demand for public transportation expanding, Amtrak will resume full passenger rail service.
A full long-distance interstate schedule will restore four state-sponsored lines. The Chicago-Milwaukee partnership with Wisconsin will resume next week. The three state-sponsored routes connecting Chicago and Quincy, Chicago and Carbondale, and Chicago and St. Louis, will run at full capacity by mid-July. Passengers can reserve tickets starting the week of July 19 on Amtrak.com beginning this week.
Amtrak previously announced a return to normal operations for the Hiawatha Service on May 23, a partnership of Illinois and Wisconsin departments of transportation that runs between Chicago and Milwaukee with a stop in Glenview.
Under Rebuild Illinois, a total of $1.1 billion is allocated for rail improvements, including $78 million in new funds to upgrade rail crossings and improve safety.