Huntley backs out of stop on Chicago-to-Rockford passenger rail line

Huntley no longer will have a stop on the planned Chicago-to-Rockford passenger rail line because the village has backed out.

Huntley was slated to be one of three stops on the route in between the two termination points, along with Elgin and Belvidere.

Village Manager Dave Johnson said Friday that Huntley has notified the Illinois Department of Transportation, which is in charge of the project, that the village isn’t interested in having a station because of concerns about how the stop might affect its downtown, especially with regard to traffic and parking.

Uncertainty with ridership numbers and village financial commitments also factored in, Johnson said.

Ridership numbers for Huntley were estimated to be between 200 and 300 per day in 2045, according to the Chicago to Rockford Rail website.

Johnson said the village notified IDOT two weeks ago that it was backing out. A public information meeting that had been scheduled for Huntley this week about the train station was canceled.

Huntley still appears as a stop in online information about the planned intercity rail line, which say it’s expected to debut in 2027.

An IDOT spokesperson confirmed Huntley has informed the agency it no longer wants the train station.

“Service to Rockford will not be impacted. We anticipate construction beginning in 2026, with trains tentative to start running by the end of 2027,” IDOT spokesperson Guy Tridgell said.

There had been discussions in town about where a new train station might go, although they did not generally center on the downtown area. But the reasons Johnson gave for Huntley backing out were issues that village officials had brought up about the station.

City officials in Marengo have expressed interest in having a stop on the new passenger line there.