Handful of migrant buses arrive in Wilmette in recent days

Six buses of migrants from Texas have arrived in Wilmette in the past week, leading to them being rerouted or the riders having to disembark and ride into Chicago on the Metra when drivers refuse.

Two of those buses arrived midafternoon on Thursday, Jan. 4, according to Wilmette Village Manager Michael Braiman. Wilmette police were on hand to help passengers board the Metra trains to transport them to Chicago’s processing and welcome center.

“We’re really focused on the safety and the well-being of the passengers in those buses especially with the concern that these drivers may be driving for many, many hours well in excess of what is allowed by federal government standards,” Braiman said. “We’re glad we’re able to help the passengers get to where they need to go safely.”

This comes as more and more buses are dropping off passengers in the suburbs to avoid fines and impounding after Chicago City Council revised rules requiring permits and approved hours and locations for migrant drop-offs. Drop-offs are permitted on weekdays from 8 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. at the West Loop’s 800 S. Desplaines St. with a maximum of two buses per hour.

The city has also moved forward with lawsuits against transportation companies busing migrants in.

More than 29,000 migrants have been bused from Texas to Chicago since August 2022 when Texas Governor Greg Abbott began sending those who crossed the southern border into the state to sanctuary cities like Chicago.

Several suburbs — including Buffalo Grove, Aurora and several municipalities in Lake County— have moved forward with implementing fines on companies whose buses violate ordinances requiring permits to drop off one way passengers.

Wilmette does not have plans to move forward with legislation to curb buses at this time, according to Braiman.

“We’re comfortable with the way we’re managing the process right now,” he said.

The village also doesn’t have plans to take in any of the migrants because the village doesn’t have the infrastructure to do so.

The village did look into the efforts Oak Park has made to take in approximately 160 migrants but seeing how it has struggled with greater services than are available in Wilmette, the village determined it wouldn’t be feasible.

“We just don’t have the capability or resources to do that,” he said. “We don’t have a certified health department to provide medical care. We don’t have a social services department to provide wrap around services. We don’t have long-term temporary housing.”

As of Tuesday, Jan. 2, approximately 75 buses have dropped migrants off at suburban Metra stops across six counties, said Metra’s Director of Communications Michael Gillis.

“We just don’t know,” Gillis said when asked if the arrivals will likely continue. “We don’t get advanced notification of this but our police have tried to coordinate to the extent they can with the various municipal police departments.”

The increased ridership hasn’t caused undue issue for Metra as migrants tend to be dropped off during off peak ridership hours, according to Gillis.

“We’re all just trying to do the best we can,” Gillis said.