High Speed Rail To Start On Third Street

A state transportation department study will recommend a high speed rail line be placed along Springfield’s 10th Street Corridor. U-S Senator Dick Durbin says he’s pleased with that choice. But he adds it is still a long way from becoming a reality.
A draft of the report will be unveiled tomorrow. Durbin was briefed on the report last week.
The Senator says it’s good news for local leaders who have wanted 10th Street utilized. The bad news is the time frame. He says it will take tens of millions of dollars, and several years, to get 10th Street ready and he’s unsure where the money will come from as government budgets are tight.
It means Third Street, which runs through the downtown, will be utilized, at least in the beginning…

DURBIN “They’ll be using 3rd Street on a temporary basis, 10th Street on a long term basis. But 10th Street will require tens of millions of dollars to move forward and take several years. Now, I am hoping as part of this agreement, that 10th Street will be the ultimate location and the city will agree to make the changes on the 3rd Street corridor.”

Those changes include higher level safety gates that prevent a motorist from driving around them and onto the tracks when a train is coming. Durbin says part of the cost of moving the trains to 10th Street would include purchasing property and infrastructure improvements. The high speed trains would reduce their speed when traveling through the city.