City council discuss Springfield Rail Improvement Project, brief shouting match after meeting

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WICS/WRSP) - The Springfield City Council held its meeting on Wednesday due to election night. During that meeting, Mike Mendenhall with Hanson Professional Services opened with a presentation providing updates to the Springfield Rail Improvement Project. He says the project related to the 10th Street corridor is on track to be completed by 2027.

Illinois Metra Alert Today: Riders Must Sign Up for New System

Metra's old email alert system shuts down Thursday as a new text and email notification service launches.

The $202 Iowa to Illinois Train Loop You Might Regret Passing Up

A short journey across a state line can deliver the pleasure of train travel without requiring a cross-country holiday. Burlington, Iowa, and Galesburg, Illinois, sit on the California Zephyr route, making them a useful pair for a modest rail outing built around time in one destination. This is an out-and-back...

Metra, CTA reach out for public input at Farmers Market

Representatives from Metra, the CTA and the newly formed Northern Illinois Transit Agency, or NITA, shrugged off an early light rain Saturday to spend six hours talking with the public at the Oak Park Farmers Market. . Wednesday Journal observed a general public clearly interested both in hearing what public transit...

Gas prices trended down in past week across the Tri-States

IOWA, ILLINOIS & MISSOURI— Gas prices have trended down across the Tri-States in the past week. The national average for a gallon of regular unleaded is $4.12, down twelve cents from last Wednesday. The average price for a gallon of diesel is $6.27, down seven cents from last week.

Transit experts and advocates share first thoughts on NITA’s 2027 budget, hoping it’s got what it takes to change the game

It’s been just over a year since Illinois’ “Halloween Miracle” prevented Chicagoland transit from turning into a pumpkin. In the wee hours of October 31, 2025, Springfield lawmakers rescued the system from the fiscal cliff, and overhauled its governance structure, by passing the Northern Illinois Transportation Authority Act.

SMTD acquiring land first step to permanent facility

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WICS/WRSP) - The Sangamon Mass Transit District (SMTD) has acquired twenty-five acres of land at 350 W. North Street on the south side of Springfield for a future offstreet secondary hub facility and access road. SMTD currently operates an on-street transfer point on Junction Circle south of Stanford...

South Main Street in Jacksonville slated to reopen by Thanksgiving

Jacksonville's South Main Street is projected to be reopened to traffic by Nov. 26, according to the city.

Building Blocks of Success: IDOT Announces Dates for Disadvantaged Business Enterprise Program Workshops

SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Department of Transportation is hosting free virtual workshops in November as part of its continuing Building Blocks of Success series for Disadvantaged Business Enterprise firms interested in strengthening their skills, growing their business and bidding on state projects. New and existing DBEs, as well as...

Illinois gas prices fall with seasonal demand, refinery maintenance, GasBuddy reports

CENTRAL ILLINOIS (WCIA) — Drivers may finally see some relief at the gas pump in the coming weeks after months of rising prices. GasBuddy published its weekly report on prices Monday morning, and the fuel savings platform reported that average gasoline prices fell in almost every state in the last week. Diesel prices also fell […]

6 Illinois Rail Trails Where Old Train Routes Now Carry Families Past Bridges And Fall Woods

Somewhere in southern Illinois, you can pedal a bike straight through a hill. Trains used to rumble through that same tunnel. Now families on bikes and on foot roll through it instead, with nothing louder than a few excited shouts echoing off the walls. That swap fascinates me. Railroads needed...

6 Illinois Train Rides Where Late Fall Color Rolls Past The Window Without Any Traffic

A wooden interurban car built in 1902 still carries riders along the Fox River every fall weekend. Its museum calls it the oldest operating interurban car in North America. I love that a ride older than most grandparents still runs on its own old line. That car is only one...

Sharing I-80 With Semis: Truck Safety Tips for Illinois Drivers

Interstate 80 through northern Illinois is one of the busiest freight corridors in the United States. From the Indiana border through Joliet and across to the Iowa state line, I-80 carries a constant stream of 80,000-pound commercial trucks running the supply chain that connects the coasts. Passenger cars and semi-trucks share this road at highway speeds, and the physics of that combination are unforgiving when something goes wrong.

BLET Members Ratify a Five-Year Deal on the Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern

INDEPENDENCE, Ohio — Members of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen have ratified a five-year agreement with CPKC covering the railroad’s Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern lines. The union announced the vote on October 29. The contract is written to bring those workers to parity with crews on CPKC’s former Soo Line territory.

Crash scene involving a school bus in Springfield

Illinois Winter 2026-27 Weather Awareness: 5 Car Risks Before Snow

From Chicago to Springfield and Rockford, five car problems could leave drivers stranded in snow.

New safety plans aim to fix dangerous Illinois roads

Region 1 Planning Council has developed four traffic safety plans aimed at reducing serious injuries and deaths on roads in northern Illinois. The plans cover Winnebago County, Boone County, Rockford and a three-county Metropolitan Planning Area encompassing Boone, Ogle and Winnebago counties, according to a community announcement. The recommendations address driving behaviors including speeding and impaired driving as well as safety measures such as helmets and child safety seats. Proposed infrastructure strategies include improving pedestrian visibility, creating protected lanes, designing safer intersections and adding roadway departure warnings such as rumble strips. “We want to make the streets safer for people, whether they are traveling by vehicle, bike, or foot,” said Tim Verbeke, R1 director of planning. “Each comprehensive plan looks at the safety improvements that are the most impactful to our community.” Plans target high-injury areas R1 developed the plans with funding from a 2023 Federal Highway Administration Safe Streets 4 All grant. Under the grant, R1 identified high-injury areas in the transportation network, evaluated roadway safety challenges and recommended improvements across the regional system. The Safe Streets 4 All program seeks to reduce or eliminate roadway fatalities and serious injuries for people traveling by any mode, according to the

Public Encouraged To Vote Forest Hill Flyover For America’s Best Transportation Project – Top $10,000 Prize Goes To Golden Hope Foundation

The Illinois Department of Transportation is reminding the public that just a few weeks remain to vote for the Forest Hill Flyover as the top transportation project in the nation. The win would bring Illinois national recognition and $10,000 in prize money that IDOT will award to Golden Hope Foundation,...

Decatur Residents Asked to Weigh In on High-Speed Rail Study

Decatur residents have another opportunity to weigh in on a proposed statewide high-speed rail network that could connect Central Illinois with Chicago and the St. Louis area. The Illinois High-Speed Railway Commission is accepting public feedback through November 6 as part of its ongoing feasibility study. The Illinois Department of...

Gas prices remain steady across the Tri-States

IOWA, ILLINOIS & MISSOURI— Gas prices generally stayed constant over the past week. The national average for a gallon of regular unleaded is $4.24, down two cents from last Wednesday. The average price for a gallon of diesel is $6.34, up four cents from last week. On average, a...