Illinois Governor JB Pritzker says “I feel very confident we’re not going to let transit fail in Illinois.”

Pritzker and other transportation officials were at Chicago Union Station on Tuesday, for the 100th anniversary of the historic depot.

Following comments about the station, its past, and role for the future, Pritzker took questions from reporters on a variety of topics.

Evanston Now asked the governor about the likelihood of state lawmakers coming up with a transit funding solution before the $770 million “fiscal cliff” kicks in next year.

Unless that deficit is headed off, area transit agencies project massive service cuts, layoffs, and fare increases.

Pritzker said if the amount of legislative work put in on resolving the crisis is any indicator, “I’m confident something will get done.”

“Some of the issues are hard,” Pritzker added, “which is why this has been taking so long.”

Those issues include not only how to come up with $770 million — or more, if some proposals to expand transit beyond the status quo are included.

Another sticking point is potential restructuring of transit agencies. Currently, the Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) is the umbrella organization for Metra, the CTA and PACE.

Legislators were unable to reach agreement before their session ran out on May 31.

They are scheduled to return in the fall for the so-called “veto session,” which has been moved up from November to October to allow more time for issues such as transit.

Joining Pritzker for the Union Station anniversary ceremony was Kirk Dillard, board chair of the RTA.

After the ceremony, Dillard told Evanston Now that he is “optimistic there will be a satisfactory solution for mass transit, but I don’t know what the legislature has planned for timing.”

Dillard said that every public dollar spent on transit generates four additional dollars from the private sector.

“It’s mind boggling,” Dillard said, that many people “don’t realize how valuable transit is.”

Dillard said Illinois is “dead last” among the states in the per capita share of transit expenses covered by government at 17%.

While lawmakers and the governor have all expressed confidence in recent weeks that a transit funding solution will indeed occur, there’s still no proposal publicly on the table.

So as Union Station celebrates its 100th anniversary, there are still questions as to how many commuter trains … and commuters … the station will be handling when the 101st anniversary rolls around.