Statement from Governor Pat Quinn on U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood's Decision

CHICAGO - January 29, 2013. On behalf of everyone in his home state of Illinois, I congratulate Ray LaHood today for his outstanding service to our nation as Secretary of the U.S. Department of Transportation. Standing alongside President Barack Obama, Secretary LaHood helped lead our nation through one of the most challenging times in history. Throughout his long career of service to the people of our state and nation, Ray LaHood has combined an unmatched ethic of public service with a strong vision to ensure our nation's prosperity in the 21st Century.

As U.S. Secretary of Transportation, LaHood looked to the future. He realized the importance of implementing sustainable practices to strengthen our country's infrastructure, helping the United States remain the best place to do business while making sure families can easily connect with each other across states and regions. He made unprecedented improvements in safety on our roadways, railways, transit systems and in our skies.

During the worst recession since the Depression, he provided remarkable leadership in helping to restore our economy by spearheading the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which invested $48 billion in our transportation system and put people back to work across the United States. Thanks to Ray LaHood, Illinois is a national leader in high speed rail.

I was proud to stand next to Ray LaHood last October when we inaugurated high speed rail in Illinois and watched the speedometer on that train top 111 miles per hour. Illinois and the nation are picking up speed and heading toward a much brighter future, thanks to the hard work and visionary leadership of our friend Ray LaHood.