The state’s willing to pay almost $10 million to help relieve the long waits at railroad crossings in Ottawa. The Rebuild Illinois grant will cover 95% of the estimated $10.3 million cost to move an Illinois Railway OmniTRAX rail yard. It’s along Fremont St. between Columbus and Champlain streets now. Ottawa Economic Development Director Dave Noble says it will be moved east of Champlain St. to a two-mile stretch where there are no crossings.
People have wanted a solution for decades. Noble says an overpass or a viaduct–the most commonly called for solutions–wouldn’t work without tearing down houses to make room.
Noble says it could be three or four years before construction starts because of regulatory conditions. Ottawa Port Authority President Keith Conrad says it’s exciting to get word of a big grant to solve a problem the authority has worked on for years.
Correction: Dave Noble is Ottawa’s Economic Development Director, Tom Duttlinger is the City Engineer. We apologize for the error.
The train track that runs alongside Fremont St. where it crosses Columbus St. in Ottawa plagues drivers with long waits for trains undergoing slow movement through the rail yard.