Why can’t we enjoy a nice lunch in downtown Chicago?

Today, getting from Champaign to downtown Chicago quickly is no easy, inexpensive task. Even if you have a car on campus (or have access to a ride) it can take more than three hours one way from the Quad to the Loop, and that’s a best case scenario. Bus services, while more accessible to the average student, are left to the whims of Interstate 57 and the Dan Ryan just like a car is.

Without a car your options are limited. The current Amtrak service from downtown Champaign to Union Station, while reasonably priced if booked in advance, can take more than four hours as it crawls along, waiting for freight trains to pass. It takes longer than equivalent train services did decades ago.

Flying? Enjoy that. Due to an understandable lack of demand, service at Willard Airport is infrequent and expensive. The flight itself is fast but incredibly pricy, well out of the budget of the average student, and by the time you check in, fly, grab your bags, and get on the Blue Line it’s basically the same time budget as if you stayed on the ground and drove.

Because of the lack of good transportation options, students think of Champaign and Chicago as distant cities. They aren’t. In a straight line (essentially the line that Illinois Central train tracks run) it is only 126 miles from downtown Champaign to downtown Chicago. According to a study commissioned by the Midwest High Speed Rail Association, a train traveling at a top speed of 220 miles an hour can cover the distance in only 45 minutes, including a stop in Kankakee. Imagine the world of possibilities this would open up. Afternoon class canceled? Head downtown to Michigan Avenue for lunch. Warm day? The beach beckons. The possibilities for collaboration between the University and businesses in Chicago are limitless, and anything that makes it easier for recruiters to get on campus is something worth its weight, literally, in gold.

This isn’t a pipe dream, nor does it rely on some undiscovered technology. In Germany these trains run as frequently as every half an hour, with fares rivaling those of a Suburban Express bus. The first step, and the first stop, should be right here in Illinois.

Owen Marsden

Treasurer-Elect