CHICAGO: Transit Developments

[Randomguy34]

Sen. Tammy Duckworth shared details on how much Illinois will receive from the infrastructure bill, as well as some items she fought for such as transit accessibility and lead pipe removals:

- CTA, Metra, Pace, and downstate transit agencies will get $4 billion, can also compete for additional federal funds

- $1.75 billion to make public transit stations across the country fully accessible to those in wheelchairs

- Illinois will get $9.8 billion for highway projects, $1.4 billion for bridge repairs, $149 million for EV stations, and $100 million for broadband access in rural areas

- $15 billion for a national lead-pipe replacement. Note: Chicagoland has 23% of all the nation's lead pipes

- Partially restoring the full federal deduction on state and local taxes

Duckworth finds way to avoid being 'locked in' at CTA stations
https://www.chicagobusiness.com/greg...d-cta-stations

[lakeshoredrive]

My friend and I were having a discussion about transit projects in Chicago and the Circle Line came up. We talked about the feasibility of that project, but he also proposed an idea where instead of the circle line, there could be a new line (Silver) that goes straight across across Western Ave from the south to the north. His reasoning is that there are multiple CTA stations on Western (Orange, Pink, Blue, Brown) and that it would be more feasible to connect to these stations and make it easier to get across town. CTA could build a Western Ave station for the yellow line to extend it further north. Likewise, CTA could maybe build one for the green line on the 63rd and halsted branch and extend it west to Western so the line can be further south than the orange line.

So the Silver Line would look like this:

Green Line (63rd) -> Orange Line (49th) -> Pink Line (21st) -> Blue Line (Eisenhower) -> Blue Line (Milwaukee Ave) -> Brown Line (1900 N) -> Yellow Line (Asbury Ave)

Do you guys think this could be more feasible than the Circle Line?

[nomarandlee]

Originally Posted by Randomguy34

- $15 billion for a national lead-pipe replacement. Note: Chicagoland has 23% of all the nation's lead pipes

-]

Holy crap. I had no idea that was a fact.

[k1052]

Originally Posted by nomarandlee

Holy crap. I had no idea that was a fact.

Chicago kept installing them much longer than almost anywhere else I am aware of, up until 1986.

Unrelated, the Amtrak-Metra fued has been partially resolved by the STB:

Amtrak-Metra ties are back on track after ruling on Union Station rent

Federal regulators have settled a landlord-tenant dispute between Amtrak and Metra over the rent for Union Station, with neither side complaining that it’s been railroaded.

The federal Surface Transportation Board, in a Tuesday announcement, decided financial terms for the commuter railroad’s continued use of Union Station, which Amtrak owns. It ordered Metra to pay about an additional $1 million a year, bringing its annual rent to $10.67 million, with yearly increases tied to inflation.

The board’s order settles a dispute dating from at least 2019. A sticking point was how to share the cost of capital improvements when Metra — at least before COVID-19 — accounted for the vast majority of people passing through the terminal.

The federal agency, which decides fights between railroads, essentially split the difference on each side’s fiscal arguments. Amtrak had wanted Metra to pay $14.79 million a year, while Metra countered with $6.74 million.

Unlike a typical rent dispute, eviction was not an option. No one was threatening to disrupt Metra’s service.

Other matters involving the lease are still in dispute, but the railroads have agreed that their deal will run through Sept. 30, 2029, with a 10-year extension option.

https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/8/...ortation-board


They're still arguing over the operational stuff AFAIK.

[WrightCONCEPT]

Originally Posted by M II A II R II K

A closer look at CDOT’s plan to close Chicago’s transportation equity gap

https://chi.streetsblog.org/2021/08/...on-equity-gap/

https://www.chicago.gov/content/dam/...ortation21.pdf

That's a great image and it is very sobering with the gentrification and growth of the North side and decline and decimation of the West and South Side.

[ardecila]

Maybe that map is true but I quibble a bit with the methodology of using per capita income instead of household income. What you're seeing here isn't necessarily income inequality, but differences in birth rates.

Under a per capita measurement, a single person making $100K a year appears twice as wealthy as a (traditional) family with two kids and each parent making $100K each. Is the single person's standard of living twice as high as that of the family?

[Rizzo]

Originally Posted by lakeshoredrive

My friend and I were having a discussion about transit projects in Chicago and the Circle Line came up. We talked about the feasibility of that project, but he also proposed an idea where instead of the circle line, there could be a new line (Silver) that goes straight across across Western Ave from the south to the north. His reasoning is that there are multiple CTA stations on Western (Orange, Pink, Blue, Brown) and that it would be more feasible to connect to these stations and make it easier to get across town. CTA could build a Western Ave station for the yellow line to extend it further north. Likewise, CTA could maybe build one for the green line on the 63rd and halsted branch and extend it west to Western so the line can be further south than the orange line.

So the Silver Line would look like this:

Green Line (63rd) -> Orange Line (49th) -> Pink Line (21st) -> Blue Line (Eisenhower) -> Blue Line (Milwaukee Ave) -> Brown Line (1900 N) -> Yellow Line (Asbury Ave)

Do you guys think this could be more feasible than the Circle Line?

It would probably be less challenging to build, but wouldn’t have that much benefit north of where western crosses the River. There’s a drop in population density west of western at that point. If it was mostly apartment buildings and intersections that could accommodate higher density, I would be more inclined to agree, but I think buses work better here. Where it’s more difficult to reach rail service is around Humbolt park. Too bad there isn’t a Division street subway that meets up with the blue line. But I doubt the tunnels can take all that much additional rush hour capacity

[WrightCONCEPT]

Originally Posted by ardecila

Maybe that map is true but I quibble a bit with the methodology of using per capita income instead of household income. What you're seeing here isn't necessarily income inequality, but differences in birth rates.

Under a per capita measurement, a single person making $100K a year appears twice as wealthy as a (traditional) family with two kids and each parent making $100K each. Is the single person's standard of living twice as high as that of the family?

That's part of it but even with that switch in metrics, the results will be the same so tomatoe tomato, potatoe, potato.

[jtown,man]

Originally Posted by lakeshoredrive

My friend and I were having a discussion about transit projects in Chicago and the Circle Line came up. We talked about the feasibility of that project, but he also proposed an idea where instead of the circle line, there could be a new line (Silver) that goes straight across across Western Ave from the south to the north. His reasoning is that there are multiple CTA stations on Western (Orange, Pink, Blue, Brown) and that it would be more feasible to connect to these stations and make it easier to get across town. CTA could build a Western Ave station for the yellow line to extend it further north. Likewise, CTA could maybe build one for the green line on the 63rd and halsted branch and extend it west to Western so the line can be further south than the orange line.

So the Silver Line would look like this:

Green Line (63rd) -> Orange Line (49th) -> Pink Line (21st) -> Blue Line (Eisenhower) -> Blue Line (Milwaukee Ave) -> Brown Line (1900 N) -> Yellow Line (Asbury Ave)

Do you guys think this could be more feasible than the Circle Line?

Feasable?

I didn't know we included that metric here.

The Red Line Extension is Exhibit A that feasibility doesn't matter.

[ardecila]

Originally Posted by WrightCONCEPT

That's part of it but even with that switch in metrics, the results will be the same so tomatoe tomato, potatoe, potato.

Not really. The map, as drawn, makes places like Norwood Park look middle-class just because people there have kids. People there LOVE to be considered middle class, when their incomes are anything but. And, on the flip side, paints those who don't have kids (including LGBT folks, etc) as rich elites who don't need city investment.

I'm not minimizing that kids are a big financial burden, but it's important to understand the biases in the data before you look at colors on a map and use that to set city policy.

[Mr Downtown]

A crosstown line at Western is only slightly more useful than one at Ashland—not much. The reason is that making two transfers at 2400W takes almost as much time as making one transfer in the Loop.



A crosstown BRT line at 4600W or 4800W (ActiveTransportation Alliance's Lime Line, above) is probably the second most useful investment we could make for improving transit equity. In first place, IMHO, is fare integration and half-hourly clocker schedules for the Metra Electric and Rock Island lines.

[ardecila]

Originally Posted by Mr Downtown

A crosstown line at Western is only slightly more useful than one at Ashland—not much. The reason is that making two transfers at 2400W takes almost as much time as making one transfer in the Loop.

A crosstown BRT line at 4600W or 4800W (ActiveTransportation Alliance's Lime Line, above) is probably the second most useful investment we could make for improving transit equity. In first place, IMHO, is fare integration and half-hourly clocker schedules for the Metra Electric and Rock Island lines.

Why BRT for the Belt Railway corridor? I understand the advantages of BRT for street running, or if you want to branch off the corridor like Lake Shore Drive, but if you're installing on a grade separated railway corridor why not just invest in a rail line akin to how the Orange Line was built?

I don't even know if it's worth considering light rail, since the primary cost savings from LRT (the ability to run at-grade) is moot here, and other aspects of the L system (short rolling stock, short platforms, smaller loading gauge/curve radius) are closer to LRT than the typical heavy rail standard. Seems to me like you could just do an Orange Line-esque project, but with cheaper Metra style stations and 4-car platforms. Maybe take advantage of the grade separation to do full automation and high frequencies.

[Busy Bee]

It's so obvious the MidCity Transitway needs to be heavy rail I feel stupid even saying it out loud.

[Mr Downtown]

Active Trans describes it this way: "The project, which is also known as the Mid-City Transitway, could come in the form of CTA rail or bus rapid transit (BRT)."

If, in fact, it's a fully grade-separated ROW, there's probably little to be gained (other than lower operating costs) from doing it as BRT. However, we could also think of the corridor as an Ottawa-style BRT trunk, from which buses branch out at the north end to continue to various job centers in Skokie or Northfield or around O'Hare. Same at the south end, if we could find any job centers left with more than 100 jobs.

[Mister Uptempo]

Metra will hold a virtual public meeting on Sept. 9 to introduce the next phase of its project to replace 120-year-old bridges along the Union Pacific North Line on the North Side of Chicago. This phase includes the replacement of 11 bridges and retaining walls as required between Fullerton and Addison.

The Metra UP North Rebuild: Fullerton to Addison Project is currently in the design and planning stage with construction expected to begin in 2023 and completion expected in 2027.

----------snip-------------

Additional project elements include shifting the tracks west within the existing railroad right-of-way to align with the tracks north and south of the project area; reconstructing underpasses with increased lighting and ADA accessible travel paths; lowering of Roscoe and Cornelia Streets to maintain current clearance under the UP North Line and the CTA Brown Line; refurbishing and painting of the existing Lincoln/Addison bridge; and some utility work along the project corridor.

The project is anticipated to be constructed in two phases to maintain all rail operations and reduce impacts to pedestrian, bicycle, and automobile traffic. There will be some street and sidewalk closures throughout the project and the community will be notified beforehand. Additionally, property owners with backyards, gardens, or other property adjacent to the railroad may be impacted by the construction. Metra will be conducting outreach and coordination with these property owners.

More detail at Metra.

Virtual meeting sign-up link.

Metra's UP-North Rebuild page.

[ardecila]

Originally Posted by Mr Downtown

Active Trans describes it this way: "The project, which is also known as the Mid-City Transitway, could come in the form of CTA rail or bus rapid transit (BRT)."

If, in fact, it's a fully grade-separated ROW, there's probably little to be gained (other than lower operating costs) from doing it as BRT. However, we could also think of the corridor as an Ottawa-style BRT trunk, from which buses branch out at the north end to continue to various job centers in Skokie or Northfield or around O'Hare. Same at the south end, if we could find any job centers left with more than 100 jobs.

There are 5 grade crossings near Midway (the one at Archer to be eliminated soon) so those would need to be separated.

Other than that, it appears to be a fully grade-separated corridor except at railroad diamonds, which would pose a problem for BRT as well as rail.

[VKChaz]

Originally Posted by Mr Downtown

Active Trans describes it this way: "The project, which is also known as the Mid-City Transitway, could come in the form of CTA rail or bus rapid transit (BRT)."

If, in fact, it's a fully grade-separated ROW, there's probably little to be gained (other than lower operating costs) from doing it as BRT. However, we could also think of the corridor as an Ottawa-style BRT trunk, from which buses branch out at the north end to continue to various job centers in Skokie or Northfield or around O'Hare. Same at the south end, if we could find any job centers left with more than 100 jobs.

I think Bedford Park would fall into that general area

[sentinel]

Good article and nice images too (not sure date it was released)

A Model System: Considering Chicago’s Multimodal Transit Nodes
"As America reinvests in infrastructure, it’s critical that public transit services interconnect, building on each other’s strengths."

https://architizer.com/blog/inspirat...ransit-system/

[dropdeaded209]

"As federal, state, and local governments consider reinvestment in infrastructure, we turn our attention to the magnificent example set by Illinois’ capital city."

inspires a lot of confidence when the author can't even get the basic facts straight...

[Busy Bee]

Somebody missed 5th grade.