Easing rail congestion a goal for new CMAP chief

The nation's former railway chief, now the region's chief planner, wants the freight industry to pay its share when it comes to unclogging train congestion in the metropolitan area.

Joseph Szabo, chosen Wednesday as the new executive director of the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning, outlined goals Thursday that include easing rail congestion and updating the regional plan.

Chicago is a railway hub that is vital to the local economy, but the thousands of trains that crisscross the city and suburbs tie up crossings and result in delays that reverberate nationwide.

“CREATE has to be a priority,” Szabo said of a $3.8 billion program to build railroad bridges and additional track throughout the region.

Although freight railroads are partnering with the federal and state government to pay for CREATE, the industry's contribution has lagged.

“There's no question we need a stronger commitment from the freight rail industry,” said Szabo, the former Federal Railroad Administration chief and South suburban mayor. “We need to quantify public and private benefits to make sure the dollars invested are matched accordingly.”

About $1.2 billion has been committed to CREATE with the state and federal government providing $740 million so far compared to $234 million from the railroads.

Szabo also intends to dust off CMAP's GoTo 2040 regional plan that provides a road map for transportation, housing, parks and economic development in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry and Will counties.

He praised GoTo 2040 and didn't expect to diverge too far from its conclusions, but he said it's important to show how to achieve some of the items on the report's wish list, which include transit and road projects.

GoTo 2050 will be a “new full-blown plan,” Szabo said.

He acknowledged that a cash crunch at state and federal levels is a challenge that hampers progress.

One solution could be an idea CMAP floated in 2014 to raise the regional sales tax by a quarter-cent to generate $300 million a year for transportation, water and open-space projects. “We really need to think about self-help ... how we as a region can come together to advance our own future,” Szabo said.