A southbound Hiawatha train arrives in Glenview

A proposal to add more Amtrak trains between Chicago and Milwaukee continues to face opposition, due to concerns about how the transit agencies running the route plan to deal with rail traffic increases.

The Hiawatha route runs seven times a day Monday-Saturday, and six times a day on Sundays. Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT), Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT), Amtrak and Federal Railroad Administration are currently looking into expanding service to 10 trains all seven days a week.

Last fall, the transit agencies released an Environmental Assessment report that suggested some infrastructure changes needed to make it possible, and finding that it wouldn’t affect the environment.

Residents and officials in Glenview and Northbrook raised concerns, arguing that it would result in increased noise and pollution. In response to the ensuing public pressure, the transit agencies agreed to study issues in greater depth. But the two villages remain concerned, saying more in-depth studies are needed.

The Hiawatha route launched in 1935 as a Chicago-Minneapolis service. It didn’t take on its current form until 1972, when Amtrak started using the name for Chicago-Milwaukee trains. Since 1989, WisDOT and IDOT have been providing most of the financial support, with WisDOT covering about 75 percent of the state share and IDOT covering 25 percent.

The route doesn’t have some of the features common in state-funded routes, such as a cafe car and business class seating area, but it still has other amenities, including on-board Wi-Fi, a designated quiet car and bicycle storage areas.

Since 2005, Hiawatha had three intermediate stops — Glenview, Sturtevard and Milwaukee Airport. The Glenview station is the only one that gets other service. Milwaukee District North Metra Line local and express trains stop there multiple times a day, and the long-distance Empire Builder train picks up passengers on the way north and drops off passengers on the way south.

The National Association of Railroad Passengers’ analysis of Amtrak ridership data for 2009-15 breaks down how many riders traveled between Glenview and other stations. Milwaukee emerges as the top destination, followed by Milwaukee Airport and Chicago, with Sturtevant coming in fourth. The data counts both riders leaving from and arriving at Glenview. The analysis also indicates that 88.6 percent of the passengers that used the station traveled within 100 miles. The furthest station that falls within that limit is Milwaukee.

According to the analysis, Glenview, Sturtevant, Milwaukee Airport and Milwaukee show a similar pattern — the ridership rose for the first three years, peaks in 2012 and then declines. But ridership between 2014 and 2015 differs. At Sturtevant, ridership increased from 70,341 to 74,472, nearly reaching the 2012 high of 74,752. At Milwaukee Airport, the decline continued, but it was a slight one, going from 159,900 to 157,000. In Milwaukee, the ridership saw slight growth, going from 586,200 to 586,900. Meanwhile, Gleview’s saw a relatively small drop, going from 58,882 in 2014 to 58,143 in 2015.

The draft environmental assessment report lays out the case for increasing service. It stated that Hiawatha ridership has been increasing every year since 2001, though, as the report notes, the numbers come with a caveat. After Amtrak introduced e-ticketing in 2013, it was able to more accurately count the number of passengers using multi-ride tickets. The ridership chart included in the report shows that the ridership was 819,125 under the old counting method and 778,469 under the new counting method. In 2014, the first year when only the new method was used, the number went up to 804,861. So while the numbers suggest an upward trend, it’s not clear what the ridership would have looked like if the new method has been used for the past 15 years.

The report continues to say that the ridership growth has been straining capacity, especially during rush-hour trips. It indicates that most of the rush-hour passengers actually traveled between Glenview and Sturtevant.

The report also notes that, according to a 2008 Environmental Impact Study for the for the I-94 highway reconstruction, traffic volumes between Chicago and Milwaukee were expected to increase. At the time, it was assumed that a commuter service between Kenosha and Milwaukee would be built, taking some pressure off the highways. But, as the report notes, the project was scuttled after Scott Walker was first elected governor in Wisconsin, so the increases are likely to be even higher.

Under the current schedule, Hiawatha runs seven trains in both directions Monday-Saturday, and six on Sunday. An extra early train runs in both directions on weekdays, and an extra late evening train runs in both directions on Saturdays. In addition, Amtrak runs one extra one-way Thruway motorcoach bus that leaves Chicago at 9:15 p.m. and arrives in Milwaukee at 11:30 p.m.; and an extra one-way early morning bus on Saturdays that leaves Milwaukee at 6 a.m. and arrives in Chicago at 7:35. Unlike the trains, those buses don’t make any stops along the way.

Amtrak proposes making a total of 10 round trips, making all weekday-only trips daily, adding an extra early morning trains in both directions, an extra afternoon southbound train, an extra northbound evening train and making the Saturday late evening train daily. The new northbound morning train would leave Chicago at 9:25 a.m, stopping in Glenview at 9:47 a.m. and arriving in Milwaukee at 10:54 a.m. The southbound morning train would leave Milwaukee at 7:25 a.m., stopping in Glenview at 8:26 a.m. and arriving in Chicago in 8:59 a.m.

The early evening train would leave Chicago at 6:45 p.m., stopping in Glenview at 7:07 p.m. and arriving in Milwaukee at 8:16 p.m. The early afternoon southbound train would leave Milwaukee at 1:56 p.m., stopping in Glenview at 2:57 p.m. and arriving in Chicago at 3:29 p.m. The now Saturday-only late evening train will see its schedule shift, so it would leave Chicago at 10:30 p.m. instead of 11:10 p.m.

According to the EA report, the schedule was suggested in response to rider feedback.

“Survey responses indicate that passengers desire a departure time between the existing evening departures to accommodate later working schedules and a departure after 8:05 p.m. to allow for participation in evening activities in Chicago,” it stated. “The survey responses [also] suggest that passengers desire additional frequencies in the peak hours. “

As the report notes, the major issue with increasing service is that the Hiawatha shares tracks with Canadian Pacific freight trains, and with Metra trains on most of the Illinois option of the route. During the discussions between the freight railroad company and the transit agencies, they came up with several ways to address it.

One idea immediately raised concerns in Glenview and Northbrook — the proposal to add new siding track would be added on the Union Pacific Railroad running through west Glenview, between Lake Avenue and Shermer Road. It would give CP freight trains room to wait while they get permission to move between two lines, freeing up space for Metra and Amtrak trains.

Residents and elected officials from both villages expressed concerns about train noise and diesel pollution. Donald Owen, Glenview’s deputy village manger, told the Chronicle that it would be like asking residents who live near the tracks to move next to a freight yard.

“The major problem is that they’re positing a holding track through major neighborhoods,” he said. “We asked for more data in relation to what are environmental impact of freight trains sowing down and stopping on that line. There’s a lot of traffic congestion that could occur [because of] trains sitting there idling.”

Owen also said that there were concerns about visual impact of trains with double-stacked containers sitting on a line that always sits on the embankment, looming over the surrounding neighborhoods while they wait.

Since the transit agencies released the environmental assessment last fall, the officials from two villages, as well as members of Congress and other officials, pushed the transit agencies to do a more thorough study.

In response, in February 2017, WisDOT announced that it would be doing further environmental assessment. Arun Rao, the WisDOT Passenger Relations Manager, told the Chronicle that they are looking at number of issues.

“WisDOT and IDOT are undertaking additional analysis to quantify noise and vibration impacts and impacts on other environmental resources of the proposed projects,” he said. “If additional environmental impacts were found during that process, mitigation actions may be required or further environmental analysis may be required by the FRA or permitting agencies. “

Owen said that it wasn’t enough, because Glenview and Northbrook wanted an Environmental Impact Statement Study, which, he said, is more thorough and more detailed.

“So far, they only have said that no, we don’t intend to do an EIS, but we will do an additional study,” he said. “Glenview and Northbrook’s position is that we want comprehensive EIS. That’s what we requested.”

Erik Jensen, Northbrook’s assistant village manager, confirmed that Northbrook is looking for an EIS, saying that, ultimately, their primary concern is their residents’ well-being.

Rao told the Chronicle that the transit agencies couldn’t do an EIS until their current additional study is completed.

“Whether an Environmental Impact Statement would be done or not is a decision made by the Federal Railroad Administration, after the Environmental Assessment is submitted to them,” he said. “So the states will be submitting a final EA to the FRA, and the FRA will either sign a Finding of No Significant Impact, request additional analysis, or ask for an EIS.”

Rao added that the study they are doing now goes more in depth than a typical EA.

“The additional analysis that is being done now to develop the final EA for submittal to FRA goes beyond what is typically included in an EA and will result in a level of analysis that would be similar to the level of analysis in an EIS,” he said.

Most of the Glenview riders that spoke to Chronicle said that they didn’t use Amtrak, and they had no opinion about the Hiawatha service expansion.

Michael Matta, of Chicago, said he regularly commutes using Metra, but he only takes Hiawatha about once a year, to go to the Milwaukee Summerfest. He said he hasn’t heard about the expansion proposal, but he would support more service in theory — at least up to a point.

“If it affects the community in any ill way, I would be against it,” Matta said.

Rick Samuelson, of Des Plaines, said he took Amtrak in a past, but not recently. He hasn’t heard about the proposal, either, but that it sounded like a good idea.

Susan Johnson, of Madison, Wis., said she takes Hiawatha four times a week. She said she doesn’t drive, and anything that increases her public transportation options would be great.

“It would be very good,” Johnson said. “Any [extra] trains are good for me.”

Deana Stanton lives in Glenview and commutes to Chicago for work. She said that for her, the challenge is to get off work in time to catch a train that would get her back in time to pick up her kids from school. While she sometimes manages to get out early enough to catch one of the Metra trains, Hiawatha is a good alternative if she can’t.

“Amtrak is convenient, because it [takes] 20 minutes,” she said.

Stanton said that, while she hasn’t heard about the proposals, having more service around rush hour would help.

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