Things learned from IDOT
I caught the very tail end of the IDOT hearing on high speed rail in Springfield last night. They were nice enough to leave the powerpoint presentation running for me while they packed up.
I learned some interesting things I don't remember hearing before in this debate. Such as:
- The proposed 10th Street corridor consolidation involves five different railroad companies and none of them have expressed interest in the plan.
- The 10th Street corridor consolidation would require four sets of parallel tracks, not just two.
- The specific overpasses and underpasses for the 3rd street corridor are not part of the current proposal. Those details would be worked out later. So the scary post cards and horror stories about how new overpasses and underpasses would destroy downtown are speculative. The public will have ample opportunity to weigh in on those details.
- The proposed 3rd street corridor plan would alleviate Amtrak delays that are caused by freight traffic. Consolidation on 10th street could cause more delays.
I wonder what local press coverage would look like if it accurately gave all relevant information and stopped pretending that everyone is united behind 10th street consolidation. People have valid issues with the 3rd street corridor plan, but talk of the apoclolyptic destruction of the city center is getting out of hand.