IDOT HAS THE RIGHT IDEA, BUT TRANSIT RIDERS NEED TO OCCUPY THE RAILWAYS

The Illinois Department of Transportation has the right idea.  We definitely need a high-speed rail line from St. Louis to Chicago.  

http://www.kmov.com/news/talkers/100-million-being-invested-in-St-LouisChicago-rail-project-273409391.html

But WE, THE PEOPLE need to take over the railroads in the same way we need to take over public transit.  Trains-- local commuter, state, and national-- are the future, not more buses, and not more cars and highways!

http://www.eia.gov/countries/index.cfm?view=consumption
http://www.citylab.com/commute/2014/07/how-parking-spaces-are-eating-our-cities-alive/374413/
http://finance.yahoo.com/blogs/daily-ticker/does-uber-mean-the-end-of-cars--134641160.html
http://www.cnn.com/2013/03/19/opinion/iraq-war-oil-juhasz/

As with public transit, railroads should be communally owned and operated by the public-- Amtrak is government owned-- and only leased to private, for-profit, companies, freight or otherwise.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rail_transportation_in_the_United_States

And safety of the public should be the first priority, not down the list after profits and corporate convenience. 

http://www.stltoday.com/business/local/who-is-shaping-the-nation-s-railroad-safety-rules/article_87cfc631-3db4-595f-b0f1-a3e02058820f.html 

The first step is to learn more about current railways in your region, and to begin questioning elected and transportation officials on what is being done to develop them.

Railway is not "other transportation", it is our first priority as a forward thinking nation.

http://www.modot.org/othertransportation/rail/documents/MAPrail_passenger_dated11_15_07.pdf