During the presidential campaign, Donald Trump promised to spend $1 trillion to improve the nation’s crumbling infrastructure.
Within a week of being sworn in, President Trump has compiled a list of the 50 most critical infrastructure projects he plans to tackle, three of which are major projects within Illinois — two in Chicago and one downstate.
The list was released to the National Governor’s Association by the Trump transition team, which is seeking input from state leadership before finalization.
While the proposed projects total only $137.5 billion in spending, they are thought to be just the beginning of the administration’s far-reaching plan to rebuild the country’s crumbling highways, airports, dams, bridges, and other infrastructure.
Fast-Tracking Infrastructure Projects
While the list, entitled “Emergency and National Security Projects” is preliminary and subject to change, it includes cost estimates and job impact numbers. Half the money for the projects was expected to come from private investment.
The 50 projects identified for fast-tracking is similar to a list of priority infrastructure projects distributed to the governor’s association in December, with a few notable exceptions. The Alaska Pipeline and LNG Project on Obama’s list was replaced with a Texas Central Railway project by Trump, and a Fort Mojave Solar Project in California was replaced with a Howard Street Tunnel project in Baltimore.
Both lists note three Illinois Projects as critical:
- Updating the aging Red and Purple elevated/subway lines on Chicago Transit Authority’s commuter rail system
- Redeveloping Chicago’s Union Station commuter train facility
- Rebuilding two locks along the Illinois River, one at LaGrange and one in Peoria
Governors Invited to Make Submissions
The list of infrastructure projects originally began with the nation’s 50 state governors, all of whom were invited to submit “big shovel” projects within their states that they would like to see prioritized.
In order to be considered, the projects had to meet specific criteria:
- They had to improve national security or resolve a public safety “emergency”
- They had to be “shovel-ready”, with a minimum of 30% of design and engineering work already completed
- They had to be direct job creators
- They needed to have a proven potential for improving US manufacturing capabilities
The most expensive Illinois project on the list is rebuilding the Illinois River locks, which would cost an estimated $1.8 billion and create 1,800 direct jobs.
Updating the CTA’s Red and Purple lines would cost an estimated $2.1 billion and would create 2,100 direct jobs, according to the list.
Redeveloping Chicago’s Union Station has a price tag of $1 billion and would create 1,000 direct jobs.
Soon after Trump’s list was sent to the governors, Senate Democrats unveiled their own $1 trillion infrastructure list, which they said would create more than 15 million jobs.