After Years of Federal Investment, Duckworth, Durbin Celebrate Grand Opening of Fully-Accessible Southern Illinois Multimodal Station

August 28, 2026 After Years of Federal Investment, Duckworth, Durbin Celebrate Grand Opening of Fully-Accessible Southern Illinois Multimodal Station [CARBONDALE, IL] – U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today joined Governor JB Pritzker, Carbondale Mayor Carolin Harvey, Illinois Secretary of Transportation Gina Biagi and local leaders to celebrate the opening of the new Southern Illinois Multimodal Station (SIMMS), a project the Senators helped secure more than $18 million in federal funding for and championed for years. The new station features fully accessible facilities, including ramps and improved platforms, to make public transportation safer and more accessible for all riders while strengthening connections across Southern Illinois. Photos from the ceremony can be found on Senator Duckworth’s website . “When public transportation is accessible, everyone benefits,” Duckworth said. “Today’s grand opening shows what we can accomplish when federal, state and local governments work together. The Southern Illinois Multimodal Station will make it easier for people with disabilities, parents with strollers and all travelers to get where they need to go safely and confidently, while expanding opportunity across the region. Together, we’ll keep fighting for the federal investments our transit systems need to remove barriers and modernize aging infrastructure.” “Senator Duckworth and I helped to secure $18.3 million in federal funding for the Southern Illinois Multimodal Station to better connect families, students, and small businesses to local and national destinations,” Durbin said. “This federal investment will be a tremendous boost to Carbondale and Southern Illinois, with SIMMS acting as both an economic hub for the city and a modern regional transportation center.” Duckworth and Durbin helped secure a total of $18.3 million in federal funding for the Southern Illinois Multimodal Station and have been long-time champions of the project on the federal level. The new station will serve as a connection point for Amtrak passenger rail, Greyhound bus service, mass transit service, bicyclists, pedestrians and allows for safer, easier and more reliable travel throughout the region. -30- Print Tweet Previous Article