On Sept. 9, 2025, community leaders across the Quad Cities announced in a press release the formation of a new committee to advocate for a passenger rail connection between Chicago and the Quad Cities.
The Rock Island County Passenger Rail Committee is made up of government officials, business leaders, labor leaders, economic development experts and community advocates. This committee was formed under the Rock Island County Board and is led by County Board Chairman Richard Brunk.
Maria Ontiveros, president of Mercado on Fifth, is another committee member. She said the committee has yet to meet, but is in communication with each other and state leaders to push the rail project across the finish line.
US senators from Iowa and Illinois sent a letter to Amtrak in 2008 advocating for rail service between Chicago and the Quad Cities. Funding was initially awarded a few years later at the federal level, according to a Quad-City Times article.
As a part of Amtrak’s 50th anniversary, the government-run rail provider announced a 15-year plan for future developments, which included a focus on developing rail service between Chicago and the Quad Cities.
In 2015, Bruce Rauner announced a spending freeze due to battles over additional funding, bringing the rail project to a halt.
The project resumed and gained new life with the election of Governor JB Pritzker in 2019. After his election, Pritzker signed into law the Rebuild Illinois Capital Plan, an infrastructure bill that allocated $225 million to the project.
Moline Mayor and Augustana Voice Professor Sangeetha Rayapati said this project has been a priority since being elected mayor in 2021.
“There can be no isolation and no stagnation for the Quad Cities,” Rayapati said.
Six years later, the project still isn’t complete, but members of the committee are optimistic about its future. The next step is to secure funding to make the privately owned freight tracks safe for passenger rail.
“The time is right to make a big push; we’ve got to strike while the iron is hot,” Ontiveros said.
Committee members hope that this project will be beneficial to the region. Committee Member and Former Deputy Secretary at the Illinois Department of Transportation, Douglas House, said the project is estimated to bring $30 million a year and 825 jobs to the community.
House said there have been positive developments, with every level of government investing in the project. House said the committee has been working hard, giving presentations and speaking with state leaders to advocate for the necessary remaining funding in this year’s transit bill. Rayapati is urging the legislature to make changes.
“I want the legislature to put their money where their mouth is,” said Rayapati.
House compared the broader plans for rail in Illinois to spokes on a wheel with Chicago as the hub. Train connections are also planned from Chicago to Rockford and from the Quad Cities to St. Louis.
“Transportation evolves and is central to all economic development,” House said. “This is an opportunity for the governor to show we can still do big things in Illinois.”
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this article misspelled Rayapati.
