Morris is part of project to bring passenger rail to Grundy County

Morris Mayor Chris Brown joined Peoria Mayor Rita Ali and former Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood in Peoria on Thursday to announce that the passenger rail service between Peoria and Chicago was selected for the Federal Rail Administration’s Corridor Identification Program.

They were joined by representatives from Senators Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworths’ offices, elected officials, area leaders and members from the Peoria Area Passenger Rail leadership team.

“This effort started as a local project that grew into a regional project that became a state project and is now a federal project,” Brown said. “Bringing Amtrak passenger rail to Morris would have an immense economic impact on Downtown Morris and the entire community. I’m excited to be a part of this team of leaders and look forward to continuing our joint efforts in making passenger rail service a reality for all of our communities.”

The Corridor Identification and Development Program was created under the bipartisan infrastructure law to develop passenger rail routes, and this project will receive $500,000 to fund step one of the Service Development Plan. This plan will determine engineering and cost requirements.

Brown and Knudson have been meeting regularly with other community leaders, state and local officials since early 2022 on the proposed passenger rail project. The proposed route begins in Peoria and runs through La Salle-Peru, Utica, Ottawa, Morris and Joliet, ending at Chicago’s Union Station.

“The FRA Corridor Designation for this project, plus the additional $500,000 will continue the momentum to bring passenger rail service to and from Peoria and Chicago,” LaHood said.

The last time a train carried travelers from Peoria to Chicago was in 1978, when the Peoria Rocket was decommissioned.

“Illinois is the undisputed transportation hub of North America, with passenger rail at the heart of a vast multimodal system that moves people safely and reliably between our state’s great cities and institutions,” said Illinois Transportation Secretary Omer Osman. “We look forward to working with local stakeholders and continuing to explore the possibilities as efforts to expand passenger rail service in Illinois advance another step.”