The City of Moline received a grant from the Illinois Department of Transportation through the execution of a Technical Service Grant Agreement to study the removal of freight rail car storage next to the Western Illinois University Quad Cities Riverfront campus project, the relocation of the existing Iowa Interstate rail yard in Rock Island to Silvis, the feasibility of a local commuter passenger rail system between Silvis and Rock Island, and the evaluation of potential candidate sites in the Illinois Quad Cities for the citing of an Amtrak Passenger Rail Station.
The City of Moline retained the services of Hanson Professional Services with these grant funds along with local matching funds equally provided by the Cities of Moline and Rock Island. The cities have accepted the recommendations of the Metropolitan Rail Study and are pursuing the development of an Amtrak Passenger Rail Station at Moline Centre Station as the recommended location in the Illinois Quad Cities, in cooperation with other interested agencies and parties in establishing passenger rail service between the Illinois Quad Cities and Chicago.