The federal government is kicking in another big chunk of money to finish the modernization program at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport.
Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin visited O'Hare Tuesday to announce $410 million to help build two new runways and to extend a third. The city says that will create 13,000 jobs.
Durbin credited President Obama with championing the funding.
"He understands that we need to keep our commitment to O'Hare, to Illinois and to the nation to put America back to work," Durbin said of Obama.
City officials say Tuesday's announcement brings total federal support of the project to $747 million.
"It's an enormous amount of money, but it really is the kind of investment that has to be made at O'Hare in order to continue it to be the premiere international airport that it is," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, a former Republican congressman from Peoria.
When the work at O'Hare is done, the airport will have eight runways. The city says that also means adding 300,000 flights a year.
