Amtrak service between Chicago and the Quad Cities region of Illinois and Iowa will be delayed until after 2015 due to additional time being needed for track rehabilitation.
Jae Miller, a spokeswoman for the Illinois Department of Transportation, said that a section of Iowa Interstate Railroad track between a BNSF Railway connection at Wyanet and Moline, Ill., needs more work to make it ready for passenger service than was considered when the application for federal money was made in 2010.
“This additional work also means that the start of service has been delayed; a public construction and operational start-up schedule will be announced later this year,” Miller said.
IDOT had expected the service to begin in late 2015.
Paul Rumler, a Quad Cities Chamber of Commerce executive who has been the area’s top advocate for passenger rail service, says the delay isn’t surprising. “It’s not too surprising that they’ve hit new issues that will take a little more time,” he says. “I’m not discouraged.”
The delay is the latest since the federal government announced in late 2010 that $230 million had been awarded for a link between Chicago and Iowa City, Iowa.
Tags: Amtrak, Amtrak Illinois service, Amtrak in Illinois, Amtrak to Quad Cities, Illinois Department of Transportation
Amtrak in the Heartland 
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