QC passenger rail project gets glimmer of hope

Transportation and infrastructure projects are quickly moving forward in the Quad Cities. That might even include progress on a long delayed passenger rail service for the region. Those were some of the top messages delivered by local, state and national transportation experts during the inaugural Quad Cities Regional Business Journal’s Transportation & Infrastructure Seminar held […]

Transportation and infrastructure projects are quickly moving forward in the Quad Cities. That might even include progress on a long delayed passenger rail service for the region. Those were some of the top messages delivered by local, state and national transportation experts during the inaugural Quad Cities Regional Business Journal’s Transportation & Infrastructure Seminar held Thursday, April 11. The event, held at Bally's Quad Cities Casino & Hotel in Rock Island, attracted about 225 people.

Sponsors for the half-day seminar included Valley Construction, IMEG, Shive-Hattery, MetroLINK, John Deere and Ecogistics. The event featured 14 local, state and national experts addressing various transportation issues that impact the Quad Cities – including a Moline-to-Chicago passenger rail service that has been discussed and delayed for years. Negotiations between the Illinois Department of Transportation, Amtrak, and the Iowa Interstate Railroad have been dragging on for years, with no apparent end in sight. Over the years, more than $500 million in state and federal tax dollars have been pledged to the project, which appears to have stalled. Last year, Moline Mayor Sangeetha Rayapati, along with Illinois Sen. Mike Halpin and Illinois Rep. Gregg Johnson, accused the Iowa Interstate Railroad of acting in bad faith and holding up the passenger rail project in an effort to get more public money. During Thursday’s seminar, Omer Osman, the secretary of transportation in Illinois, gave the crowd a glimmer of hope that progress is being made on the passenger rail project. He said he has been in talks in the past few days with railroad officials, who he did not identify, and has hope that progress is being made on the issue. “I know many of you are frustrated (about the delays in rail service), and so am I. …. We are hopeful there are more (talks) to come,” Mr. Osman said. Several people in the audience applauded after hearing the news. One of those in attendance who was happy to hear that report was Patrick Larkin of the Bettendorf Financial Group. “I’m very interested in what the secretary of transportation said. … I hope he can get Amtrak going,” Mr. Larkin added. In addition to the brief update on passenger rail, the QCBJ seminar featured the region’s public works officials giving updates on transportation and  infrastructure projects in each of the Quad Cities; some national trends in transportation; and an outline of planned improvements to the Quad Cities International Airport. Those airport plans include updating the QCIA’s facility through a plan called Project Gateway that will cost between $40 million to $60 million. The first part of that plan, known as Project One, will cost $18 million. This phase has already began and will take about 13 months to complete. Some of the airport changes planned include the customer- and visitor-facing area that will involve removing security screening equipment from the ticketing lobby and modernizing airline ticket counters. Benjamin Leischner, the QCIA’s executive director, said passenger impact should be minimal throughout Project One. Delta’s ticketing counter has temporarily relocated next to American. The checked bag drop-off for TSA screening will be on the far east end of the lobby, just before turning to go to the security checkpoint.  The entire Project Gateway will “bring the airport up to modern standards,” added Mr. Leischner, one of the day’s presenters. The airport official said he is “very optimistic” the local airport will get more destinations in the future. In December, the airport welcomed direct service to Charlotte, North Carolina. Audience member Curt Pratt, operations director for the Bettendorf Community School District, said the news about the airport’s improvements was one of the most interesting parts of Thursday’s seminar. “It’s just good to know they are investing in the airport,” he added. Other speakers at the seminar focused on national trends and challenges facing the transportation and infrastructure industry. For instance, Amy Asselin, manager of excavator marketing for Deere & Co., said that getting people into the industry continues to be a challenge. “We are really struggling to bring in new people,” she added. Some of the solutions to that problem include working with young people and students to get them interested in the skilled trades, and recruiting more women for the construction industry, she said. The seminar also featured a panel of Quad Cities public works officials who outlined some of the current and future projects in their communities. The panel members were: Mike Bartels, public workers director for Rock Island;  Nicole Gleason, public works director and assistant city administrator for Davenport;  Tim Kammler, director of engineering for East Moline;  Brian Schmidt, public works director for Bettendorf; and Denver Schmitt, public works director for Moline. Some of the projects outlined included:

• Rock Island: Work on an $8.7 million Rebuild Downtown project is moving forward. That project centers around rebuilding streets and sidewalks, installing new lighting, replacing sewer systems, installing more signage and outdoor patio spaces to make the downtown a better place for residents and visitors. The work will begin soon and should be complete by the end of the year. “Our downtown hasn’t seen this kind of investment in a generation,” said Mr. Bartels.
• Davenport: The city is in the process of making upgrades to numerous streets; creating “quiet zones” around downtown train crossings; and planning for more work on  53rd Street. The city was also recently awarded a $13.1 million federal grant to help the city fight and recover from river flooding in the future. The funding will support projects in the city’s Mississippi River Flood Resiliency Plan, including road raises, street repairs and traffic safety improvements. When completed, the projects will establish a permanent flood detour route for large-scale flood events, ensure access to the Centennial and Rock Island Arsenal bridges during periods of major flooding, and improve transportation safety at the River Drive intersections at Third and Fourth streets. Also, the new Fairmount Community Center, located next to the Davenport Public Library – Fairmount Branch, is nearing completion. That new center will include 4,500 square feet of usable space with the ability to accommodate 359 occupants. The facility will contain a half-court style gym for introductory sports, drop-in activity, and a wide range of other functions, including movies projected on the exterior of the building.
• Bettendorf: This city has a wide variety of projects in the works, including more work in The Plex – the area around the TBK Bank Sports Complex just south of Interstate 80 and near Middle and Forest Grove roads. Also, a Gateway Bridge is the works that will span across Middle Road near I-80. The bridge is currently in the design phase. In other work in that neighborhood, the Iowa Department of Transportation plans to reconfigure the I-80 and Middle Road interchange starting next year. This is an estimated $58 million project. Also, work moves forward on the city’s swimming pool and aquatic project, called The Landing, and an ice rink project. The new amenities are expected to be open next year. The aquatic center portion of the project is expected to cost $18 million.
• Moline: The city is planning a wide variety of street reconstruction projects, including  just starting a $3.1 million project to reconstruct 19th Street through downtown. Construction will focus on 19th Street from River Drive to Seventh Avenue, and will convert 19th Street to a three-lane roadway (from the current four lanes) and a 12-foot-wide bike path will be installed on the east side of the roadway. This project is the first in a multi-phase/multi-year project for Moline that will ultimately connect the Mississippi River recreational trail to the Rock River bike path through the center of Moline.
• East Moline: One of this city’s big projects is an almost $30 million revitalization project that will make improvements to The Bend, Rust Belt and downtown areas of East Moline. The goal is to make improvements to East Moline so the city is more walkable, bike-friendly and beautiful. The project – which could begin construction next year and be complete in 2027 – will include new landscaping, more outdoor event space, improved railroad crossings and much more. Planned improvements include streetscaping and a Bend Boulevard extension. Improvements to the Rust Belt area include 12th Avenue work and Seventh Street railroad crossing work. Improvements to downtown include 15th Avenue streetscaping. Most of the multi-year project will be funded by a $23.7 million federal RAISE grant. The City of East Moline will kick in $5 million for the work as required by the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equityl grant.

Audience member Mr. Larkin said it was good to get updates on the many projects and hear about the “delicate balance of resources” that have to be considered when moving forward with transportation and infrastructure work. Thursday’s seminar also featured Tom Heinold, chief of the Operations Division, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, who gave the crowd an update on the locks and dam system on the Mississippi River. He urged people in the crowd to contact lawmakers to get money approved for needed repairs to the locks and dam system – especially to dam gates, which he called his top concern. “There will come a point very, very soon that not just one gate, but multiple dam gates will be down. … We need to keep up the pressure (on lawmakers),” he said. Another topic covered during Thursday’s event centered on safety. Scott Marler, director of the Iowa Department of Transportation, said the region is in the midst of a “crisis in transportation safety” with traffic fatalities on the rise in Iowa. Last year, there were 377 traffic fatalities on Iowa roads; that’s about a 12% hike from 2022, according to IDOT. Many of those deaths are due to bad decisions made by drivers, including not wearing seatbelts, being distracted by cellphones and other electronic devices, and speeding. Mr. Marler said that last year, Iowa officers issued 1,200 citations to drivers in Iowa for going over 100 mph. He urged the crowd that when hitting the road, put devices down, buckle up and watch your speed. Other presentations were made by Jeff Nelson, CEO/managing director of MetroLINK, and Denise Bulat, executive director of the Bi-State Regional Commission.