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Madison County Metrolink

Madison County Metrolink

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PostDec 15, 2004#1

Steady stream of visitors hits first open house on MadCo MetroLink extension

By Terry Hillig

Of the Post-Dispatch

12/15/2004





One of the 5 possible MetroLink Madison County routes at the Alton East Middle School.

(WAYNE CROSSLIN/P-D)



The first of three open houses to explore a possible MetroLink extension into Madison County attracted a steady flow of Alton-area residents Tuesday night.



Visitors to East Middle School in Alton asked questions, offered suggestions and viewed maps of six possible alignments for future light rail service. Each of the alignments would link to the St. Clair MetroLink line, the only existing line in Illinois.



Open houses are also planned from 5 to 7:30 p.m. today at the Tri-Cities Port District auditorium in Granite City and from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday at Woodland Elementary School, at 59 South State Route 157 in Edwardsville.



"Light rail service will be a huge asset to this county," Elisa Royce, 28, of Alton said at the Alton meeting. "This is the wave of the future and we need to get on board."



Charles Ford, 67, of Godfrey, a retired airline pilot, said he and other pilots angled for layovers in cities that had good light rail service. Such cities are vibrant, Ford said.



"They just look alive," he said. "St. Louis looks like the 18th century."



But not everyone is eager for MetroLink.



"I don't see any point in it," said Steve Rain of Alton. "I definitely don't want it under present conditions." Rain said big projects like MetroLink make money for many people but add to the tax burdens of all.



Voters in Madison County sharply rejected a proposed half-cent sales tax increase for possible MetroLink service in 1997. Proponents and opponents alike blamed that outcome on the lack of a specific route or solid cost estimates.



The open houses are part of a 10-month feasibility study being conducted for the Madison County Transit District. The study is meant to identify alternative routes and evaluate expected impacts, ridership and cost, and to evaluate funding options.



Officials say MetroLink service to Madison County could help to mitigate traffic congestion and to improve access to jobs, education and activity centers.



Reporter Terry Hillig

E-mail: thillig@post-dispatch.com

Phone: 618-659-3638

PostDec 17, 2004#2

MetroLink plans spark interest



Leaders stress planning is in its early stages



BY JAYNE MATTHEWS



jmatthews@bnd.com





EDWARDSVILLE - Madison County residents are responding well to a proposal to bring light-rail commuter service to the area, planners said Thursday at the last of three public meetings.



"The turnout has been very good. People are willing to ask questions, to hear our answers and fill out our comment sheets," said Justin Carney, project manager for a feasibility study under way at East-West Gateway Council of Governments.



A MetroLink route from an undetermined point in Madison County to St. Clair County and St. Louis probably is as many as 20 years away. Carney said the planning stage -- including finding federal money and local matching funds -- could take 10 to 15 years.



The final choice of a route will come nearer the end of the planning, he said.



"In the grand scheme of things, this is just the tip of the iceberg," he said. "At the end of the day, we're not going to be selecting a route. I think that's important for people to know. This just gives us a sense of what routes we need to continue to study."



A MetroLink feasibility study, due out in the spring, will also evaluate other aspects of various Madison County communities, such as work force, economy and traffic.



Edwardsville on Thursday promised to be the best attended of the three meetings. Nearly 60 people had arrived 20 minutes after it began.



Some asked questions of the researchers as they filed around a display of maps and information posters at Woodland Elementary School. Some gathered in small groups to talk to each other.



A few people have said they are concerned about higher taxes to pay for light rail, Carney said. St. Clair County raised its sales tax a half-cent for MetroLink.



Larry Evans drives to work in St. Louis, but he said he sometimes catches a train in Fairview Heights to entertainment areas across the river.



Evans lives in Collinsville, where a growing population and its Gateway Center convention complex are mentioned prominently by the researchers as a possible stop along a future MetroLink route.



"I would take it to work if it were more convenient," said Evans, who works at the National Geospacial Intelligence Agency.



About 100 people attended a similar meeting on Tuesday in Alton. Another 35 attended a event on Wednesday in Granite City.



Edwardsville Mayor Gary Niebur said he supports MetroLink and wants to begin working for its future in the county.



"I'm very supportive of what might be a very thorough and lengthy process," Niebur said.



Dawn East uses St. Clair County's MetroLink often. Her job in the purchasing department at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville takes her to St. Louis University, downtown St. Louis and the airport. She said she'd like to be able to catch a train in Edwardsville.



Her husband, Bryan East, also an SIUE employee, said his mother told him stories about taking the Illinois Central from Macoupin County to St. Louis. She then took a trolley to her job as a nanny.



"They're rediscovering what they should never have taken out in the first place," he said.
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PostDec 17, 2004#3

This would be great, it would start to make Edwardsville more connected into the rest of the metro, and give the little downtown area there a chance to grow. It would even be better is they can figure a way to get it up to Alton.
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PostJan 23, 2006#4

Update on Madison County plans. I really liked this quote from County Board Chairman Alan Dunstan:


"A lot of groups have shown interest, and everyone's in favor of it so far," he said. "To be a viable part of the St. Louis metro area, sooner or later MetroLink has to come to our county."




Study: ?Start small' on MetroLink to Madison County

Larry Ingram

Of the Suburban Journals

Collinsville Herald

01/22/2006



Recommendations from a feasibility study calls for MetroLink to expand from East St. Louis to a location in Madison.



Madison County should consider building a short MetroLink extension as a first step toward getting a light-rail system in the county.



That's one of the recommendations emerging from a feasibility study paid for by Madison County Transit and conducted by the East-West Gateway Council of Governments.



The "minimum build" option would extend MetroLink some four miles from an East St. Louis station to a spot along Illinois Route 203 in Madison near Granite City.



>>Rest of Story
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PostJan 23, 2006#5

The Illinois counties deserve a lot of respect for their support of rail transit. This is a good idea to get things started.



Just curious, what color would it be. On Xing's imaginary map, it looks like it would be the Orange Line.
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PostJan 23, 2006#6

On Xings map it would be the orange line.



Here is what the proposed routes are:



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PostJan 23, 2006#7

Thanks for the map. This plan is a great way for them to get started now and make the tough decisions later regarding the final destination.



I don't know how they will decide, it looks like Edwardsville, Collinsville, and Alton equally deserve a station. And there doesn't seem to be an obvious line up.
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PostJan 23, 2006#8

you know the time tables for metro-link annoy me. Why does it take "20 years" to build the lines we want. If this was a highway project we would get it in five.
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PostJan 23, 2006#9

Just a note. That's not my map. That map is from EastWest Gateway.



I agree with them, Granite City deserves the route first. I would have loved to have seen it go by Fairmont, to support the local latino population, but it doesn't make sense, with Granite City holding a larger population. Maybe they'll end up moving there, because of the transit.
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PostJan 23, 2006#10

Maybe if there is growth between Edwardsville and Alton along IL 255, a line could someday connect all four of Madison County's population centers (Tri-Cities, Collinsville, Edwardsville and River Bend). Of course, that's a long train ride from Alton to Downtown.



The minimum segment discussed in the news articles only goes from East St. Louis to Madison, which is just south of Granite City. Though stopping here allows you to in theory still head ultimately to either Edwardsville or Alton, a moderate build to a 270 or 255 park'n'ride station puts you closer to Madison County's growing households. Of course, going to 270 puts you towards Alton, and going to 255 puts you towards Edwardsville, and hence the dilemma.



If you were to only look at cost benefit per mile (connects the most activities with the least mileage), it looks like the best line would be the orange one on the map. This line goes from East St. Louis to Edwardsville by way of Granite City (an area desperate for revitalization), an I-255/270 park'n'ride station (between Pontoon and Glen Carbon) and the SIUE campus. The area between Granite and SIUE is cornfields now, but a new river bridge will likely change that. Also, the orange line mostly follows Madison County Trails, former railroads that have been landbanked. The costliest piece is actually between Granite and East St. Louis, since northeast of Granite is all abandonned railroad railbanked by Madison County Transit/Trails.
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PostJan 23, 2006#11

^Xing as a clarification I was basing that off of the other conceptual MetroLink map you made on some other thread. Coincidently, this map uses orange as well.
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PostJan 23, 2006#12

I hope Collinsville's location at the southern end of the county doesn't hurt its chances at eventually getting a stop.



Ideally there should be three lines in Madison County:



North along Rt. 3 to Alton. (the Blue Line)



North-East through Granite to Edwardsville/Glen Carbon. (the Orange Line - the most likely candidate for the first extended run off of the short run.)



East along Rt. 40 through Collinsville/Maryville to Troy/Highland, etc...
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PostJan 23, 2006#13

Actually they can save a lot more money by having one line to Alton, and another line that goes to all those places above, but splits in two ,maybe Collinsville. I was thinking something like the blue and green lines in Chicago.



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PostJan 24, 2006#14

Actually, a split would more likely be in Madison/lower Granite City (not Collinsville), with one line going to Edwardsville and another to Alton.



What hurts Collinsville's chances are the physical barrier of Horseshoe Lake (when all likely lines lead from the Tri-Cities area) and the fact that Collinsville already has relatively quick auto access to the St. Clair line and its park'n'ride stations. Comparatively, the Tri-Cities area also has fairly good auto access to the St. Clair line too at Emerson Park. However, the Tri-Cities area is more transit-dependent than Collinsville.



The question then is on your route from Granite City to SIUE and Edwardsville, how much benefit do you gain by adding extra mileage to swing over to Collinsville, when many Collinsville residents could still drive to a Pontoon Beach or Glen Carbon park'n'ride station along the Orange line.
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PostJan 24, 2006#15

southslider wrote:Actually, a split would more likely be in Madison/lower Granite City (not Collinsville), with one line going to Edwardsville and another to Alton.
Realistically, that is what will happen. Collinsville's location between the existing St. Clair line and the proposed Madison lines will nullify its chances of every seeing its own line, and most likely its own stop (like you said - its out of the way on a Granite/E'ville run).
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PostFeb 20, 2006#16

Take a baby step, consultants tell Madison County

By Terry Hillig

ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH

02/18/2006



EDWARDSVILLE



Consultants suggest that Madison County leaders start small as they consider a renewed effort to secure a MetroLink extension.



A "minimum-build" strategy would extend a new MetroLink line from the Fifth and Missouri station in East St. Louis about four miles north to a station near Illinois Route 203 in Madison.



It is estimated that the line would cost $150 million to $165 million in 2005 dollars, would serve 7,000 passengers daily and cost about $1.5 million a year to operate.



more...

http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/s ... enDocument
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PostFeb 20, 2006#17

Realistically, I don't see the voters of Madison County approving a tax raise to support the Metro-Link. They didn't do it in '97 when the economy was booming and there was more federal money to be had - and I don't think they will do it now, regardless of gas prices. Add to the fact that a good portion of voters will look at the corridor the minimum build will service and simply say "hell no."
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PostFeb 20, 2006#18

It is a deal for the public to pay a small tax that when combined becomes a large project that makes transportation across the Mississippi River easier than crossing the congested Poplar Street Bridge.



It leaves future expansion possibilities open and still to be determined.



Helps more Illinois communities to start developing around Metro stations.
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PostFeb 23, 2006#19

Actually, one of the reasons that the tax failed in Madison County was due to a lack of planning. No one knew where the MetroLink would go at that time. This study has helped to clarify what areas of Madison County could expect light rail. This 'minimum' build can be built relatively cheaply and because planning has begun it is a few steps closer towards an environmental impact statement. Also, it leaves the debate of future expansion to Alton or Edwardsville for another time.



If the local support is there then the project can move forward towards applying for federal New Starts funds. Although the half cent tax was roundly rejected in 1997, perhaps a quarter cent tax would be easier to swallow. The State of Illinois is also much, much more generous than Missouri (when it comes to mass transit)so perhaps some of the cost could be covered by the state.
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PostJun 16, 2014#20

I know we always talk about the need for a North-south Metro-Link line but we may need Madison county line.
We should Expand the blue line off of the line in St. Clair county just past 5th & Mo or Emerson park and have in go thought Granite city, Pontoon Beach , and all the way out to SIUE and Edwardsville. I feel this line could really help anchor the central corridor and make it the core of the Region.

1 It would cost small amounts to be build with just 300 to 500 million. Due to a lot of the line going through corn fields.

2 Running the blue line out to SIUE would have SIUE, SLU law school, downtown Webster U, downtown jobs, SLU main , Barns hospital, Washington med school, Washington U main and downtown Clayton all on one line.

3 For most impact it would have to be the blue line and the system would have a nice X-shape in the region and would be a great way to get people out of there cars and in to the city.

4 The line could help revive East St. Louis and Granite city.

This line may be as crucial for the region as the north-south line.
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PostOct 22, 2016#21

I prefer the orange one.



http://www.ewgateway.org/pdffiles/libra ... ofAlts.pdf
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PostOct 23, 2016#22

I think it's the only one that makes a lot of sense. I'm not sure why Metro would neglect the River Bottom communities for the Bluff communities. The purple and blue lines both hit Madison and Venice, but the purple then detours through Collinsville while the blue goes to Alton (I assume). I don't think there's a lot of demand for a Collinsville Metrolink stop as it has the easiest highway access to downtown (10 minutes) and isn't that far from the Fairview Heights station for those that want to use it. And most obviously, any Madison County line needs to hit SIUE, the Metro East's main college and the region's largest DI school. While still mostly a commuter school, SIUE has made tremendous strides in the past decade in increasing the on-campus population.

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PostJul 21, 2022#23

quincunx wrote:I prefer the orange one.



http://www.ewgateway.org/pdffiles/libra ... ofAlts.pdf
Dang. Was peeking around in this old thread when I saw this. 

Likewise, I like the Orange line. 

I personally think it would be pretty darn cool if Metrolink could add stops at World Wide Technology Raceway, downtown Granite City, SIU-E, Ralph Korte Stadium (SIU-E, City 2 soccer), and downtown Edwardsville to the system. 

In no way would I prioritize this Orange line over several other Missouri lines/extensions, but I hope that Madison County will open up to the idea of Metrolink in the coming decades. I can only hope that St. Louis will be in a better place and that Madison County will see value in attaching some of their greatest attractions and regional resources to some of Missouri's (and St. Clair County, IL's) greatest attractions and regional resources.

Fat chance. 

I would also really love to see Alton get a line at some point. I've been impressed with that town and its potential, but it would in no way be worth it to me for the system to put a line out that way if it doesn't manage to go into the downtown Alton area on a flood-proof path. 
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PostAug 13, 2024#24

Madison County Metrolink Study

Dug this up today. Interesting to think what could have been, especially seeing the proposed routes. A combination of route A and B would be very dynamic for Madison County, especially in combination with the extensive Madison County Trail system.

Hopefully the effort to get them rolled into Bi-State can return one day
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PostAug 14, 2024#25

^I built something fairly close to the orange route in my own NIMY rails game. (And even colored it IT orange.) I'm very tempted to build the Alton route as well. It's a shame we lost all that IT interurban infrastructure. Most of the local stuff would have fit quite nicely into Metrolink.
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