Sunday, October 4, 2009

Genoa, Belvidere bury the hatchet over Amtrak

News we have not heard in Boone-Winnebago Counties.

officials from Belvidere and Rockford appear to have buried the hatchet with their pro-Genoa-route counterparts from DeKalb County. City officials, state legislators, county officials, business leaders and IDOT bigwigs met Monday in an unannounced, closed-door summit meeting in a Rockford restaurant

IDOT railroads chief George Weber said the restaurant meeting "resulted in a consensus that we would go forward with that route. We know that everyone's not happy about that, but we agreed this is the best opportunity to get federal funding."

Trains following the Genoa route would reach the same stations in Rockford and follow the same route between Rockford and Dubuque

To avoid competing against Metra commuter trains, Amtrak would not be allowed to carry passengers from Chicago to South Elgin or from South Elgin to Chicago.

In another development, IDOT announced that a public information meeting about the project will be held from 4 to 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Northern Illinois University Outreach Center, at 8500 E. State St. in Rockford

Click on the following to read the rest of the story:  Genoa, Belvidere bury the hatchet over Amtrak :: The Courier News :: Local News

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