Greens: Using mass transit to push gambling a bad deal for Illinois

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, December 10, 2007

CONTACTS:
Patrick Kelly
ILGP Media Coordinator
773-203-9631
media@ilgp.org

Phil Huckelberry
Government and Elections Committee Chair
309-268-9974
phil.huckelberry@ilgp.org

Green Party candidates for the Illinois General Assembly have blasted
the compromise pushed by state lawmakers to expand casino
gambling to fund road construction projects in exchange for increased
mass transit funding. Real solutions to transit funding are already on
the table thanks to groups like the Transit Riders Alliance:
www.savechicagolandtransit.com.

"The conversation in Springfield is all wrong," says Rita Maniotis,
Green Party candidate for 21st State Representative. "Instead of
asking 'how can we use mass transit to expand gambling,' leaders
should be talking about how to use mass transit to improve our
environment, expand economic and education opportunities for riders,
and make Illinois a better place to live."

The Illinois Green Party is a strong supporter of mass transit, not
only in Chicagoland, but in communities that rely on it across
the state.

"Mass transit is vital to our health and welfare," said Kevin
O'Connor, candidate for 41st State Representative. "It's a remedy to
congestion on the roadways. Instead of expanding gambling to pay for
new road construction, why not take care of the roads we have, and
use mass transit to address the growing commuter needs." O'Conner
added,  "By adding dedicated express coach lanes for mass transit in
the suburbs we could cut down on commute times and take more cars
off the road."

Green Party candidates, such as Tony Cox, 9th State Representative,
say they support mass transit expansion projects, such as the Metra
STAR line, the CTA Circle Line, and a proposed high-speed rail corridor.

"We have some of the highest commute times in the nation, people
can't get from home to work, and all Springfield can talk about is what's
the best way to make Illinois a gambler's paradise," said Cox.

###