Blue Line O'Hare Project

[joechicago]

Anyone want to guess what this could be?

Scoopsville: Sneed has learned Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who credits his decision to rebuild a section of the Red Line train system as one of his biggest accomplishments, plans to announce another major CTA project soon.

“It’s similar to the just completed Red Line south CTA improvement project of CTA PresidentForrest Claypool and Mayor Emanuel,” said a top Sneed source.

“The work will further reduce slow zones and substantially increase speed of ride,” the source added.

http://www.suntimes.com/news/sneed/23352230-452/mayor-plans-to-announce-a-major-cta-project-sneed.html

[KedziePink]

Something for the North Red Line or Congress Branch?

[sw4400]

Something for the North Red Line or Congress Branch?

I would have to agree. It has to be a North Side Main Line rebuild for the Red/Purple Lines, or a rebuild of the Congress Branch of the Blue Line, which went into service in 1958, eleven years before the Dan Ryan branch did. But will the Alderman and public put up with a complete shutdown and rebuild of the Congress Line like they did with the Dan Ryan project?

As far as the other six lines...

• Brown Line can be ruled out, as they currently are working on the Ravenswood Connector Project, and I don't think there are any other projects that are big on the horizon here.
• Purple Line is a possibility in itself. Many of the stations are inaccessible north of Howard except for Howard, Davis and Linden. I don't think a shutdown would be required here, just another mirror to the Brown Line station project in the past where no two adjacent stations were closed at the same time.
• The Yellow Line has been upgraded to third rail power fully, but the tracks have been around since 1919. Do they need to shut down the line for a rebuild??? Could this be the "mystery project" soon?
• The Orange Line can be ruled out. Stations are accessible and it runs pretty smoothly.
• The Green Line can be ruled out. Stations are accessible and slow zones aren't mentioned often.
• The Pink Line can be ruled out. Stations are accessible and not many issues with slow zones.

[BusHunter]

It probably is the blue line. I think they scheduled that for 2014. Unless it is the 95th station or wilson station upgrades. Coming off the successful red line closure the blue line has the correct timing, but that would be an even bigger project because practically that whole branch needs an upgrade stations and tracks.

[mkohut]

All of Emanuel Hollywood Friends chip in for the Red Line Extension.

[Busjack]

• sw: It certainly isn't the Purple Line because Mayor Emanuel is not the mayor of that.
• North Red in unlikely, given the money just put into it on a temporary job, although it apparently didn't fix the problems.
• mk: It isn't the extension, because that wouldn't remove slow zones.
• Because of the consultant contracts, it can't be any secret. The only secret would be if there actually is a "funding source" for essentially construction on the Congress Blue Line project, which has to be done, or anything else.

Given this type of political gossip column, it is probably just gossip. Rest assured that Emanuel, Danny Davis, Luis Guiterrez, Quinn, 5 or 6 state reps, Durbin, and Claypool in the background would be at a photo op to announce it. As Sneed correctly indicates, Emanuel is doing his best to promote that he got the Red Line South done, since CTA can't promote anything else.

Probably it is a secret only to those who don't keep up with transit, as opposed to the South Red Line one, where only the leaking contractors were tipped off. But CTA didn't have to do "Vision Studies" because state bond money was available.

[trainman8119]

The Congress wouldn't be as catastrophic a closure because the Green Line is a hop away for the entire route, unlike the Red which had no trains of any kind south of 63rd st.

[BusHunter]

I wonder if they would reroute the #50 and #49 to serve California/Lake and Ashland/Lake? Then they would have the problem of what to do with all the Forest Park pace buses. They could always make the North Blvd strip an intermodal type bus station. They could do that on South Blvd if they allowed street parking in those lots on the south side of the street. They would need the cooperation of Oak Park on this though.

[mkohut]

I wonder if they would reroute the #50 and #49 to serve California/Lake and Ashland/Lake? Then they would have the problem of what to do with all the Forest Park pace buses. They could always make the North Blvd strip an intermodal type bus station. They could do that on South Blvd if they allowed street parking in those lots on the south side of the street. They would need the cooperation of Oak Park on this though.

They do have room for bypass if its the Blue Line.

[Busjack]

I wonder if they would reroute the #50 and #49 to serve California/Lake and Ashland/Lake? Then they would have the problem of what to do with all the Forest Park pace buses. They could always make the North Blvd strip an intermodal type bus station. They could do that on South Blvd if they allowed street parking in those lots on the south side of the street. They would need the cooperation of Oak Park on this though.

Depends how much the Pink Line is an alternate (and, of course, to a certain extent, the Orange Line).

The main question may be whether UIC is adequately served. There may also be a question whether the Pink Line adequately serves the Illinois Medical District.

Rethinking my earlier post, the possibility is that the Eisenhower Expressway reconstruction (which is starting) and the Blue Line get funded in the same package.

[owine]

Gotta think this is the Blue Line.

But the NSM elevated structure seems to get worse and worse by the day. From a selfish standpoint, I hold out hope they will do substantial work on that and construct the Clark flyover for Brown Line trains.

[BusHunter]

Gotta think this is the Blue Line.

But the NSM elevated structure seems to get worse and worse by the day. From a selfish standpoint, I hold out hope they will do substantial work on that and construct the Clark flyover for Brown Line trains.

Maybe in a perfect world. I was surprised when I found out the purple line tie replacement only involved every fourth tie which has a third rail chair on it. When the purple line gets #5000's that may be the first new cars they had since the 1959 5-50's. (That's if the #2600's didn't debut there)

Thinking more about the blue line project, that must be why they are working on the morgan entrance at UIC Halsted. Because that will soon be a terminal.

[owine]

Maybe in a perfect world. I was surprised when I found out the purple line tie replacement only involved every fourth tie which has a third rail chair on it. When the purple line gets #5000's that may be the first new cars they had since the 1959 5-50's. (That's if the #2600's didn't debut there)

Thinking more about the blue line project, that must be why they are working on the morgan entrance at UIC Halsted. Because that will soon be a terminal.

There were definitely parts of the Purple Line that got new ballast, track, ties, third rail, etc during the project. It was more than spot tie replacement.

[KedziePink]

Maybe in a perfect world. I was surprised when I found out the purple line tie replacement only involved every fourth tie which has a third rail chair on it. When the purple line gets #5000's that may be the first new cars they had since the 1959 5-50's. (That's if the #2600's didn't debut there)

Thinking more about the blue line project, that must be why they are working on the morgan entrance at UIC Halsted. Because that will soon be a terminal.

I thought the Morgan entrance was closed because of the work on the Morgan Street bridge.

[jajuan]

I thought the Morgan entrance was closed because of the work on the Morgan Street bridge.

Correct. The orange construction signs on Morgan at Harrison where Morgan is cut off even state that if I'm not mistaken with accompanying signs from CTA directing UIC students and employees along with others who usually use that entrance over to the Peoria auxiliary entrance and the main entrance on Halsted.

[BusHunter]

There were definitely parts of the Purple Line that got new ballast, track, ties, third rail, etc during the project. It was more than spot tie replacement.

I can't speak for the whole line, they did do a complete track replacement at Main for instance, but at South Blvd it's every fourth tie. Repairs seem very sporadic.

[MetroShadow]

Correct. The orange construction signs on Morgan at Harrison where Morgan is cut off even state that if I'm not mistaken with accompanying signs from CTA directing UIC students and employees along with others who usually use that entrance over to the Peoria auxiliary entrance and the main entrance on Halsted.

Also might be related to the Circle Interchange project.

[mkohut]

Also might be related to the Circle Interchange project.

http://www.circleinterchange.org/

This will give all the answers

[jajuan]

Also might be related to the Circle Interchange project.

By default since the Morgan Bridge reconstruction is a smaller part of the overall Circle Interchange project.

[Busjack]

In the world of the strange, this headline showed up on the news feed 3 days after it showed up above.

[KedziePink]

Looks like this was the mystery project we were wondering about.

[jajuan]

Looks like this was the mystery project we were wondering about.

Basically the speculation that it involved the Blue Line was correct though it turns out the rehab is occurring on the O'Hare Branch rather than the Congress end as was being speculated. And note they're going with the 4 year option, meaning whatever details Mayor Emanuel announces later today a shutdown isn't involved in this project like with the Dan Ryan leg of the Red Line.

[Busjack]

Basically the speculation that it involved the Blue Line was correct though it turns out the rehab is occurring on the O'Hare Branch rather than the Congress end as was being speculated. And note they're going with the 4 year option, meaning whatever details Mayor Emanuel announces later today a shutdown isn't involved in this project like with the Dan Ryan leg of the Red Line.

There wasn't any speculation about the Congress Branch. CTA had already announced cooperation with IDOT on that.

And as Guest pointed out, CTA has done slow zone work before, and there is the pending project to rehabilitate the L portion. Again, I say they should get rid of it and replace it with something like the Pink Line parallel to Cermak.

Also, DNA Info doesn't have the info about where Rahm is going to get the half billion.

[jajuan]

There wasn't any speculation about the Congress Branch. CTA had already announced cooperation with IDOT on that.

And as Guest pointed out, CTA has done slow zone work before, and there is the pending project to rehabilitate the L portion. Again, I say they should get rid of it and replace it with something like the Pink Line parallel to Cermak.

Also, DNA Info doesn't have the info about where Rahm is going to get the half billion.

I was referring to the musings at the very beginning of this thread starting with KedziePink's comment: "Something to do with the North Red Line or maybe the Congress branch?" and sw's subsequent response as to what the Sneed column quoted in the very first post could have been referring to. The cooperation with IDOT on Congress is not the big project being announced by the mayor as needed by Sneed, now is it? A bit quick to correct much?

[BusHunter]

Sounds to me more like station upgrades north of the Kimball subway, some track work south of there. But the branch does need upgrades. The elevated structure along Milwaukee dates to 1896, putting that structure at 118 years old next year. The steel I believe is only designed for 80 years of use. California and Damen are two of the oldest stations still remaining without an upgrade even beating out the north side main for age. I think it would be good for CTA to upgrade the stations on the O'Hare branch, similar to what's been done on the Dan Ryan, especially for the airport travelers who are judging the CTA based on a first time travel experience on a line with old stations and old trains cars. The Congress line will have it's day soon. All the stops maybe in the next 10-15 years are supposed to be accessible anyway. (I believe I read by 2030)