Press Releases
Currently showing results related to Transportation and Infrastructure
Durbin, Duckworth, Quigley, Lipinski Announce $20 Million in Federal Funding to Metra for Safety Technology Implementation
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and U.S. Representatives Mike Quigley (IL-05) and Dan Lipinski (IL-03) today announced that Metra will receive $20,168,000 from the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) for implementation of Positive Train Control (PTC) safety technology on its Milwaukee North and West lines. PTC is a federally mandated computerized system that prevents certain types of train-to-train collisions, helps avoid derailments and other accide… Continue Reading
05.22.17
Senators to Trump Admin: Cutting Off Funding for Public Transit Projects Threatens Jobs & Stifles Economy
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Bill Nelson (D-FL), Ranking Member of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, Tom Carper (D-DE), Ranking Member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, and Jack Reed (D-RI), Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and… Continue Reading
05.16.17
Durbin, Duckworth Announce More Than $250,000 in Federal Funding for Firefighter Resources
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today announced that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) awarded a total of $281,167 to Forest Park Fire Department, Mattoon Fire Department, Oak Park Fire Department, and Wauconda Fire District through the Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) Program. Each department awarded will use the funds for operations and safety including professional training, wellness and fitness programs equipment, personal protective eq… Continue Reading
05.04.17
Durbin Announces Illinois Transportation Priorities Included in Omnibus Appropriations Bill
CHICAGO - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today announced that the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2017 includes numerous transportation priorities for the State of Illinois. President Donald Trump's proposed budget would have dramatically cut transportation infrastructure funding, which would have had a devastating impact on projects across Illinois. "Investing in our transportation infrastructure creates jobs, revitalizes neighborhoods, an… Continue Reading
04.21.17
Durbin, Duckworth Announce More Than $100,000 in Federal Funding for Firefighter Training and Resources in Adams County
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today announced that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) awarded $108,182 to Adams County Ambulance & EMS through the Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) Program. This program is administered by the DHS's Federal Emergency Management Agency in cooperation with the U.S. Fire Administration. Adams County Ambulance & EMS will use the funds for operations and safety including professional training, wellness a… Continue Reading
04.13.17
Durbin, Duckworth Announce More Than $600,000 in Federal Funding for Firefighter Training and Resources
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today announced that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) awarded $628,017 to Brown County Ambulance Service and the State Fire Training Academy at the University of Illinois through the Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) Program. This program is administered by the DHS's Federal Emergency Management Agency in cooperation with the U.S. Fire Administration. "Our nation's firefighters are called upon day after day … Continue Reading
04.11.17
Durbin, Duckworth, Great Lakes Senators Urge Trump Administration to Release Army Corps Brandon Road Study to Stop Spread of Asian Carp
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) joined Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) in calling on the Trump Administration to release a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers study that recommends specific measures to prevent Asian Carp from reaching beyond the Brandon Road Lock and Dam, a crucial chokepoint in the Chicago waterway system. The study, which is critical to stopping the flow of Asian Carp and other invasive species, was set to be released at the end of February but… Continue Reading
04.10.17
Durbin, Duckworth Statement on HUD Plans to Offer Vouchers to Residents of Distressed Public Housing in Cairo
CHICAGO-U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) released the following statement after the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced it would make housing vouchers available to residents of the Elmwood and McBride housing complexes located in Cairo, Illinois. HUD will also offer relocation counseling to the 183 affected households, helping relocate them to available nearby public housing or public housing anywhere in the United States. "After years of misma… Continue Reading
04.10.17
Durbin Sounds Alarm Over Potential Russian Takeover of U.S. Energy Infrastructure
NEW YORK - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) joined Senators Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and Marco Rubio (R-FL), members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, in a bipartisan letter to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin expressing serious national security concerns over the potential takeover by Russia's state-controlled oil company of critical U.S. energy infrastructure that could put Vladimir Putin and his associates in position to influence American gas prices and oil refinery production. The lett… Continue Reading
03.30.17
Durbin Meets with CTA and CDOT to Discuss President Trump's Budget
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today met with Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) President Dorval Carter and Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) Managing Deputy Commissioner Kevin O'Malley to discuss President Donald Trump's proposed budget cuts and the devastating impact they could have on transportation infrastructure projects around Chicago. They also discussed progress on the Red and Purple Modernization Program, CREATE's 75th Street Corridor Improvement Project, updates … Continue Reading
03.28.17
Durbin Meets with CDA Commissioner Evans to Discuss President Trump's Budget
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today met with Chicago Department of Aviation (CDA) Commissioner Ginger Evans to discuss President Donald Trump's proposed budget cuts and the harmful impact they could have on airport security. They also discussed ongoing initiatives at O'Hare International Airport and Midway Airport, the O'Hare Modernization Program (OMP), O'Hare's Fly Quiet Runway Rotation program, and the Elgin O'Hare Western Access (EOWA) project. "President Trump says he wants… Continue Reading
03.15.17
Durbin, Duckworth Announce $82,000 In Federal Funding For Rural Community Development Throughout Illinois
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today announced $82,000 in federal funding for projects in Williamson, Carroll, Brown, and Massac Counties to support rural community development projects. Today's funding, provided through the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), will provide assistance to purchase new police vehicles in Hurst, Illinois, complete handicap accessibility improvements in Lanark, Illinois' city park, purchase a fully-equipped, four-wheel dr… Continue Reading
03.09.17
Durbin, Chicago Delegation Members Meet With Illinois Tollway In Support Of Elgin O’hare Western Access Project
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), along with U.S. Representatives Raja Krishnamoorthi (IL-08), Mike Quigley (IL-05), Brad Schneider (IL-10), and Danny Davis (IL-07) today met with Illinois Tollway Chairman Bob Schillerstrom to express their support for the Tollway's petition to the U.S. Surface Transportation Board (STB) regarding their ongoing dispute with Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) over the Elgin O'Hare Western Access (EOWA) project. The project creates new western road access … Continue Reading
03.08.17
Durbin, Duckworth Announce $4 Million Loan To Expand Broadband Service In Moultrie County
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today announced a $4,000,000 federal loan for the Moultrie Independent Telephone Company (MITCO) to expand broadband service in the Moultrie County area. MITCO will use the funds to make upgrades to fiber service in a portion of its service territory. Today's funding is provided through the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Telecommunications Programs of the Rural Utilities Service. "Without reliable access to broa… Continue Reading
03.07.17
Durbin, Duckworth Announce More Than $4 Million In HUD Funding For Illinois Affordable Housing
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today announced that the State of Illinois will receive $4,310,055 in grant funding through the Housing Trust Fund (HTF), a federal grant program administered by Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The HTF program seeks to increase and preserve the supply of decent, safe, and sanitary affordable housing for extremely low- and very low-income households, including homeless families. HTF funds may be used for… Continue Reading
03.01.17
Durbin, Duckworth, Quigley Press Army Corps To Approve Funding For McCook Reservoir
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and U.S. Representative Mike Quigley (D-IL) pressed the Army Corps of Engineers (the Corps) for strong and continued support for the construction of the McCook Reservoir Project in a letter to Acting Assistant Secretary of the Army Douglas Lamont. An allocation of additional funding by the Corps is necessary to meet the December 31, 2017 deadline for completion of Stage 1 of the McCook Reservoir, which is required by the p… Continue Reading
02.24.17
Durbin, Bipartisan Illinois Lawmakers Press STB To Support The Illinois Tollway’s Elgin O’Hare Western Access Project
CHICAGO - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin led a bipartisan group of Illinois Congressional leaders in urging the U.S. Surface Transportation Board (STB) to support the Illinois Toll Highway Authority ('Tollway') in its ongoing dispute with Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) over the Elgin O'Hare Western Access (EOWA) project. In a letter to STB Chairwoman Ann Begeman, the members urged STB to move quickly to confirm the Tollway's right to proceed with the next phase of the project. "Despite years of planni… Continue Reading
02.01.17
Durbin Meets With STB In Support Of Elgin O’Hare Western Access Project
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today met with U.S. Surface Transportation Board (STB) Member and former Chairman Daniel Elliot to express his support for the Illinois Tollway's petition to the STB regarding their ongoing dispute with Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) over the Elgin O'Hare Western Access (EOWA) project. The project creates new western road access to O'Hare International Airport along with a new western bypass around the airport. "Years in the making, the EOWA project … Continue Reading
01.31.17
Durbin, Duckworth Call On STB To Extend Oversight Period Of Canadian National Railroad
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth today joined the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) and the Village of Barrington in pressing the Surface Transportation Board (STB) to extend its oversight period for the Canadian National Railroad (CN) to January 2019 and urged CN to institute additional grade crossing mitigation measures. In 2009, the Surface Transportation Board (STB) placed CN under an unprecedented monitoring period when it acquired the Elgin, Joli… Continue Reading
01.13.17
Durbin, Menendez Praise Final Hud Lead Safe Housing Rule
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Robert Menendez (D-NJ) today praised the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) final Lead Safe Housing Rule (LSHR), which revises the definition of "elevated blood lead levels" and strengthens protocols by which the Department identifies and investigates lead exposure in federally-assisted housing. Under the new rule, HUD will lower its threshold for blood lead levels requiring Department intervention from 20 micrograms per dec… Continue Reading