The State Journal-Register - Ash Street Next in Line for Underpass Construction

News Article

By Tim Landis

The next big piece of railroad consolidation in Springfield also is expected to cost $20 million.

After groundbreaking Thursday for the $20 million Carpenter Street underpass, Mayor Mike Houston said the city is working on a combination of federal, state and local funding commitments required to build an underpass at Ash Street.

The Illinois Commerce Commission has committed $12 million to the Ash Street project in a five-year rail crossing improvement program. The ICC money is contingent on the city of Springfield finding funds for the remaining cost.

"We think this is going to be a very similar project in terms of cost," Houston said.
Eight underpasses and one overpass are proposed in the larger $315 million plan to combine local train traffic on the 10th Street corridor. Construction of the Carpenter Street underpass is expected to take two years.

A $14.4 million federal grant was approved for the Carpenter Street project, and Houston said he believes federal assistance would be available for Ash Street, though a specific amount has yet to be determined. The city, he added, could make up the difference if needed.
"If in fact we get to a point where we could pursue it and have most of the money," Houston said, "I would not be opposed to borrowing."

Design work on the Ash Street underpass should be completed by the end of this year, said Jim Moll, a project engineer with Hanson Professional Services of Springfield. Construction would be the next phase, Moll said, if funding is found.

If the $14.4 million Carpenter Street grant was an indication, Springfield would face strong competition for federal dollars.

Approximately $9 billion worth of projects were submitted for $475 million in funding in the round of federal transportation grants that included Carpenter Street, according to the city. Carpenter Street was the only Illinois project approved and was the second-largest grant nationwide.

Rail consolidation has momentum, U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin said after the Thursday groundbreaking. But the Springfield Democrat said funding remains uncertain for continued construction.

"This corridor here (10th Street) is one of the most heavily invested in the country," Durbin said. "It's tough. You know the competition is going to be very strong."

During the groundbreaking ceremony, Federal Railroad Administration administrator Joseph Szabo said the agency has proposed spending $19 billion on rail improvements nationwide in the next four years, including rail-consolidation projects.

"For the first time, rail projects would be provided with predictable dedicated funding," Szabo said, "just like we have for all other transportation modes."

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