Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot spearheaded a letter sent to U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg and Federal Railroad Administration administrator Amit Bose to support Amtrak’s proposed $850 million Chicago Hub Improvement Program (CHIP). The letter garnered the support of 56 Mayors, highlighting the urgent and collective need for infrastructure improvements. If successful, Amtrak would use funds from a federal Mega Grant to improve Chicago Union Station, create more routes into the city, and open a variety of new service options. CHIP would create a new way for passenger trains to access Union Station from the south. Benefits include significantly improving on-time performance for both Amtrak and Metra trains and providing capacity for new routes and increased frequencies. In addition, CHIP would provide faster connections between the region’s largest job hubs and modernize Union Station to improve passenger flow and station ventilation. CHIP would also lay foundations for future improvements, such as direct access to intercity trains at O’Hare and McCormick Place.  Mayors from many other cities in Illinois signed the letter — so did mayors in neighboring states such as Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, as well as Idaho, Kansas, Missouri, Montana, and Ohio.