RTA selects new Chairman
Tuesday the RTA board met to elect a new Chairman, Jim Reilly. I was delighted to support his election. As a state legislator Jim was one of the original drafters of the RTA Act. As they say, he was “present at the creation.” I believe that history will give him a valuable perspective as he returns 22 years later to dive back into the minutiae of the RTA Act to see what’s working and what needs to be changed.
Jim also understands the tremendous importance of transportation to our region and to the State of Illinois. His experience in the General Assembly and working for Governor Thompson and Governor Edgar will be a strong asset as the three service boards work with RTA to secure the resources we need to maintain and expand our network.
This week’s news reported that the State of Illinois received $1.65 billion in tax revenues from over 91 million tourists in 2004 – and the bulk of that was spent in Northeastern Illinois. In Jim’s former role as head of McPier and the Chicago Convention and Tourism Bureau, he has been a leader in making the Chicago area one of the world’s top travel destinations. But he also knows that cities like Las Vegas, Denver, Phoenix, and Atlanta are fierce competitors, and that they are ALL building brand new public transportation systems to compete with Chicago.
This is a defining moment in the history – not just of the RTA – but of the entire Chicago region. We must come together and make the investments necessary to maintain and enhance our world-class transportation system. If we do, the region and the State of Illinois will continue to reap the fruits of one of the world’s great metropolitan regions – strong economic growth, rich cultural attractions, and a clean environment. If we do not, we will lose ground to other cities that are making those investments, and we will have squandered the assets so carefully built by generations before us.
Under Jim’s leadership I am hopeful that we can guide the RTA and our region successfully through the challenging times ahead.
Jim also understands the tremendous importance of transportation to our region and to the State of Illinois. His experience in the General Assembly and working for Governor Thompson and Governor Edgar will be a strong asset as the three service boards work with RTA to secure the resources we need to maintain and expand our network.
This week’s news reported that the State of Illinois received $1.65 billion in tax revenues from over 91 million tourists in 2004 – and the bulk of that was spent in Northeastern Illinois. In Jim’s former role as head of McPier and the Chicago Convention and Tourism Bureau, he has been a leader in making the Chicago area one of the world’s top travel destinations. But he also knows that cities like Las Vegas, Denver, Phoenix, and Atlanta are fierce competitors, and that they are ALL building brand new public transportation systems to compete with Chicago.
This is a defining moment in the history – not just of the RTA – but of the entire Chicago region. We must come together and make the investments necessary to maintain and enhance our world-class transportation system. If we do, the region and the State of Illinois will continue to reap the fruits of one of the world’s great metropolitan regions – strong economic growth, rich cultural attractions, and a clean environment. If we do not, we will lose ground to other cities that are making those investments, and we will have squandered the assets so carefully built by generations before us.
Under Jim’s leadership I am hopeful that we can guide the RTA and our region successfully through the challenging times ahead.
posted by Carole Brown | 6/16/2005 12:14:00 PM
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