SCHILLERSTROM CALLS FOR COMPREHENSIVE TRANSPORTATION FUNDING

Labor, business and local government lobby for increased funding

WHEATON—DuPage County Board Chairman Robert Schillerstrom was joined today by Lake County Board Chair Suzi Schmidt, Palos Hills Mayor Gerald Bennett, chair of the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP), Batavia Mayor Jeff Schielke, chair of the CMAP Transportation Committee, Mike Skarr CEO and President, Naperville Chamber of Commerce, Jim Reilly, RTA, Bill Grams, Illinois Road Builders Association and Dennis Gannon President, Chicago Federation of Labor to call on the Governor and the General Assembly to make investment in our state’s transportation infrastructure a high priority. 

“Traffic congestion, and the chokehold it has on our economy, knows no boundaries.  This is not a DuPage County problem or a City of Chicago problem, this is a regional crisis that must be addressed,” Chairman Schillerstrom said.

Schillerstrom pointed out that Illinois needs a firm and equitable commitment to transportation and transit funding and that the Governor’s recently unveiled budget does not include sufficient funding and is less than half of what Illinois needs.

“Traffic congestion is seriously jeopardizing our economy, our safety, our air quality and our quality of life, Schillerstrom continued.  “We are the crossroads of North America, but if we do not increase our infrastructure investments, we will not be able to maintain our transportation preeminence, nor our economic viability.  If we cannot move workers to the workplace and goods to the marketplace, our ability to compete and to attract and retain jobs, faces serious jeopardy. Future economic growth will by-pass our region and our state.  We need a comprehensive transportation and transit funding plan and we need it now,” Chairman Schillerstrom stated.

The press conference was in support of the Transportation for Illinois Coalition (TFIC), a   group of statewide and regional business, labor, and governmental and planning organizations that have joined together to support a strong transportation alliance for Illinois.

A needs assessment performed by the Coalition in February concluded that Illinois has under invested in transportation by $25 billion. The Coalition is asking the General Assembly to increase annual program investments by $5 billion a year for the next five years.  

The Governor's proposed FY2008 capital budget shows no increase in transportation funding and cuts highway funds by $100 million from this year's level. 

Chairman Schillerstrom and the members of TFIC pledged to work with the General Assembly to come up with a comprehensive plan to fund Illinois’ critical transportation needs.

“We are asking the Governor and the General Assembly to develop a funding package that will keep our transportation system from falling into further disrepair and also develop transit and transportation plans that will give us a competitive edge for the future.  And we stand ready to help in that effort,” Schillerstrom concluded.

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