HONORABLE TONI PRECKWINKLE, PRESIDENT COOK COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS JUNE 2016 CONNECTING Cook County 2040 LONG RANGE TRANSPORTATION PLAN Acknowledgments A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT Advisory Committee To the Residents of Cook County: Michael Tang, National Material L.P. (Chairman) From roads and canals, to railways and airplanes, advances in transportation have shaped Rita Athas, World Business Chicago MarySue Barrett, Metropolitan Planning Council our nation and driven our economic presence in the world. Cook County’s economic Frank Beal, Civic Consulting Alliance health depends in no small part on our ability to provide systems that reduce the Gerald Bennett, Southwest Conference of Mayors Michael Borgstrom, Wendella Boats transportation costs for our families and businesses and improve commerce by more Paul Braun, South Suburban Mayors and Managers Association efficiently getting people to jobs and goods to markets. Transportation is an investment in Roberto Escalante, Illinois Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Sandy Frum, Northwest Municipal Conference our economic future. Jacky Grimshaw, Center for Neighborhood Technology Michael Jasso, Cook County Bureau of Economic Development In Cook County, we have the distinct advantage of being at the center of our nation’s Theresa E. Mintle, Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce transportation infrastructure. With two major airports, ten interstate expressways, and the Rosa Ortiz, Enterprise Community Partners 1 Jorge Ramirez, Chicago Federation of Labor largest freight hub in the nation, our transportation system is one of our region’s most important Deborah Sawyer, Environmental Design International assets—key not only to our economic prosperity, but to the well-being of our residents. Ronald Serpico, West Central Municipal Conference Joseph Szabo, Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning Yet, in the 70 years since the County’s last strategic transportation plan, the commitment John Yonan, P.E., Cook County Department of Transportation and Highways Andrea Zopp, Chicago Urban League and investment in our infrastructure has declined. Our transportation system has aged and fallen behind those of similar regions across the globe. Program Committee Greg Bedalov, Illinois State Toll Highway Authority For too long, Cook County sat back while others made decisions affecting our residents Randy Blankenhorn, Illinois Department of Transportation and businesses. It’s time Cook County not only had a seat at the table, but also played a Ben Brockschmidt, Illinois Chamber of Commerce Ron Burke, Active Transportation Alliance leadership role in creating a modern transportation system that meets changing consumer Dorval R. Carter, Jr., Chicago Transit Authority needs and responds to the demands of a twenty-first century economy. Joseph Ciaccio, Illinois Railroad Association Matt Hart, Illinois Trucking Association Cook County has more than half of the metropolitan region’s population, jobs, and Larry Ivory, Illinois Black Chamber of Commerce Robert McKenna, Chicago Department of Planning and Development businesses and is uniquely vested in the health and sustainability of our transportation Don Orseno, Metra system. For these same reasons, we are also uniquely positioned to lead the charge. Jorge Perez, Hispanic American Construction Industry Association Arnold Randall, Forest Preserves of Cook County Connecting Cook County is a call to action—a framework to promote the strategic partnerships Leanne Redden, Regional Transportation Authority T.J. Ross, Pace Suburban Bus Service and investments that strengthen our economy and lead to more livable communities. Rebekah Scheinfeld, Chicago Department of Transportation Karen Tamley, Chicago Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities Connecting Cook County includes input from the public and private sectors, issue experts, and community members who rely on our transportation system every day. It will allow us Peer Review Panel to achieve a better understanding of our current landscape as well as to prepare for the Dena Belzer, Strategic Economics Anjali Mahendra, WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities challenges and opportunities on the horizon. Patrick J. O’Brien, Belt Railway Company of Chicago Alexander Rothenberg, RAND Corporation Sincerely, Tom Sanchez, Virginia Tech Ron Sims, Former US Department of Housing and Urban Development Samuel K. Skinner, Former US Department of Transportation Toni Preckwinkle, President Cook County Board of Commissioners TABLE OF CONTENTS Cook County s Transportation Needs’ > 5 < Cook County s Transportation Resources’ 2 > 21 < Cook County s Transportation Priorities’ > 47 < Cook County s ROLE IN TURNING Priorities’ INTO ACTIONS > 65 < 2040 LONG RANGE TRANSPORTATION PLAN RANGE TRANSPORTATION 2040 LONG CHAPTER ONE Cook County s NEEDSTransportation’ Cook County’s transportation system is one of its greatest assets, having a central—even dominant—role in the national and international movement of people and goods. As this plan Connecting Cook County will outline, this competitive advantage is being threatened by the actions other regions are taking, as well as the Chicago region’s own limits in confronting significant challenges. Many of these impediments are evident today. Other 2040 LONG RANGE TRANSPORTATION PLAN RANGE TRANSPORTATION 2040 LONG impediments and opportunities will emerge as new technologies are adopted, as consumers express new preferences, and as the economy NEEDS continues to transform itself. Transportation supports the economy and creates livable communities by getting workers to work, shoppers to stores, students to school, and products to consumers. The Current Need for Toward those ends, the County’s transportation Transportation Services system serves three interrelated purposes. First, Every day Cook County residents use various it must support the businesses and families transportation services to get to work, school, that reside in the County. Second, it must family, and friends. Businesses use it to receive raw accommodate the demands that come with materials, ship finished products to customers, or being the hub of the metropolitan area, including fly across the world to finalize a deal. People and those of commuters from the surrounding businesses from other areas also depend heavily counties, regional freight, and visitors wishing 6 7 on the County’s transportation system, whether to take advantage of all that the region has to they are going to work, visiting a museum, or offer. Third, the system must perform a crucial provides the framework Connecting Cook County Transportation systems are multi-purpose and passing through on their way from Indianapolis to function as both the nexus of North American through which County officials, under the multi-modal. Airports generate truck and auto Milwaukee. All of these millions of daily trips fulfill freight distribution and a linchpin of the global leadership of President Preckwinkle, can plan for traffic. Passenger rail services compete with some economic or social purpose. The users of the freight network. The first and second of these the future, advocate for sound transportation freight transportation. Cars and trucks share system are looking for the least expensive, most are common to all major urban areas, but Cook the same highways. The various components policies, and—most importantly—take action. County’s transportation system is forced to have to be designed and managed as an convenient, most reliable, and safest ways to reach confront the demands imposed by all three on a integrated system, rather than as distinct silos. their destinations. The findings and recommendations ofConnecting daily basis. are based on these realities: Cook County The current transportation system involves Transportation is not an end in itself. It is a hundreds of public agencies working means by which people and businesses fulfill Demands from Within the County The purpose of transportation is to support with private sector institutions to provide their objectives. And yet, agencies responsible Residents the economy and create livable communities. transportation assets and services. Effective for transportation too often report progress in The largest and most obvious source of demand for Transportation is meant to get workers to work, transportation planning and management transportation services within Cook County comes shoppers to stores, students to school, and requires intergovernmental cooperation and terms of the number of trains run per day, the from its residents. As the center of the nation’s products to consumers. Good transportation partnerships with the private sector. condition of road pavement, or the miles of bike systems help create stronger economies, lanes installed. These measures are important, third largest metropolitan area, the County is home reduce transportation costs, and create better, This chapter of Connecting Cook County begins but the users of the transportation system only to nearly two million households and more than more livable communities. with a description of the users of the transportation care if it will allow them to achieve their goals in a five million residents. While it makes up less than system and the reasons they need these services. reasonable amount of time, at a reasonable cost, a quarter of metropolitan Chicago’s land area, its It then describes the trends that will shape future and preferably with multiple options. residents represent roughly sixty percent of the preferences and alter the way transportation