The bailout bill that kept public transit from falling off the so-called “fiscal cliff” also could be a boon for the city of Joliet.

Local officials are looking forward to the city becoming a regional transit hub when aided by some of the $1.5 billion in added annual revenue now going to public transportation in the Chicago region.

“Joliet will be a destination outside of Chicago for high-speed rail across the state,” said state Rep. Natalie Manley, D-Joliet.

Plans include a high-speed rail from Peoria to Joliet, a project on the drawing board for years.

A 2027 pilot program could increase the frequency of trains on the Rock Island line between Joliet and Chicago. Manley and other local officials view more frequent connections to Chicago as one attraction to increase ridership.

“We have to rise to the occasion,” Manley said, adding that the legislation creates a new Northern Illinois Transit Agency intended to bring improvements to transit. “The new NITA board has to make sure that the trains and buses are safe and clean. They have to be reliable.”

Metra riders on the Rock Island line in Joliet and other Will County towns might find trains running more frequently, at least in 2027. The legislation calls for the pilot program.

Although nothing is guaranteed, Senate Bill 2111 does make provisions for expanded services leading to and from Joliet. The legislation approved in October keeps trains and buses running without an increase in fares for the passengers who use them.

The price of the legislation comes in the form of a 0.25% rise in the sales tax already assessed in Will County and other collar counties in the Chicago region to help fund the Regional Transportation Authority. The sales tax will be 1% in the collar counties.

The legislation also uses $860 million from the Motor Fuel Tax that otherwise go to roads and directs them to public transit.

Manley said she and other local officials pressed for the provisions in the legislation that potentially benefit Will County.

“We hammered away at this for a year and a half,” Manley said. “If we’re going to pay something, we’re going to benefit.”

Just how much Joliet benefits will be seen in coming years. Although the legislation does set 2027 as the year for the pilot program for the Rock Island line, it does not guarantee that the money will be there to fund more trains.

“We have to work with whatever funding is available,” Metra spokesman Michael Gillis said.

Gillis said that Metra already has been working to increase frequency on the Rock Island line, adding that Metra should have more money to work with after the passage of SB 2111.

A high-speed rail line between Peoria and Joliet also has been in the works for years. SB 2111 calls for a study that could lead to expansion of the Gateway Center, which houses a train station in Joliet, to accommodate high-speed rail from Peoria and other cities.

High-speed rail has been a complicated proposition in Illinois since at least 2011, when Amtrak began planning for high-speed rail line between St. Louis and Joliet.

The Gateway Center in Joliet was built in part to accommodate high-speed rail traffic. SB 2111 calls for a study to determine how the Gateway Center should be expanded to accommodate high-speed rail to Peoria and other Illinois cities.

“I think we’re trying to connect everyone to Chicago – the economic engine of the state," Manley said.

Joliet officials see high-speed rail as a promising opportunity.

Mayor Terry D’Arcy said in an email that the city will meet in December with the Illinois High-Speed Rail Commission to discuss future plans.

“Joliet is committed to working closely with the state and our regional partners to ensure we’re aligned and ready for what comes next,” D’Arcy said.

D’Arcy said that more trains on the Rock Island line could make it easier to bring people into downtown Joliet.

Will County Executive Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant said more commuter trains to and from Chicago is what the public wants.

“This is to help our residents who are travelling back and forth to Chicago,” Bertino-Tarrant said, emphasizing that Will County needs “a constant back and forth. We need more times when people can depend on going home.”

Bertino-Tarrant and D’Arcy were part of a group that shaped the transit rescue legislation in ways that could benefit Will County and Joliet.