RTA Board approves capital amendment that adds three projects to five-year program to address safety, reliability, and…

The RTA Board in March approved adding three projects to the region’s five-year capital program that will focus on safety, reliability, and the fight against climate change. Each of these projects, and many more, can be explored in more detail on the redesigned RTAMS Capital Program page.

The RTA approves a five-year capital program as part of its budget process each year, but regularly considers amendments due to changes in funding or project needs. The three projects added to the 2022-2026 Capital Program total $3.24 million. Watch the March Board meeting or read more about each project below.

Cicero Grade Crossing: CTA and the Town of Cicero will improve the grade crossing on the Pink Line at the intersection of Cicero Ave. and 21^st Changes to this grade crossing are a priority for CTA and the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) due to several safety incidents at the grade crossing that have put CTA staff and passengers at potential risk. The $803,000 project, which is funded through Invest in Cook funds that are being matched with CTA bond funds, will include replacement of the sidewalks, signal system, pedestrian gate, and technology at the grade grossing to improve safety.
Blue Line O’Hare: The CTA will be upgrading the safety and reliability of Blue Line rail operations between Jefferson Park and the O’Hare Terminal. This $2 million project will pay for replacement of track, switch points, ties, and other infrastructure that is no longer in a state of good repair and often requires maintenance. The upgrades will enhance the ability to provide reliable scheduled service.
I-55 Garage in Plainfield. Pace will reprogram $425,000 to purchase and install charging infrastructure for electric buses at the garage currently being constructed along I-55 in Plainfield. The funding will ensure the site is ready for future electrification of Pace’s bus fleet, which the agency as committed to fully achieve by 2040.

Each of these projects can be found on the recently upgraded 5-Year Regional Capital Program section of RTAMS, the Regional Transportation Authority Mapping and Statistics website. Users can search by keyword, filter results by Service Board, mode of transit, and which core requirement or strategic goal from Invest in Transit the project will help achieve such as improve equity or achieve full accessibility. Results will show details about each project, including a description, funding amounts, a link to a project map, as well as a project benefit map that shows the area affected by the project. Look out for the launch of a systemwide map of all capital projects later in 2022. Read more about the update in a recent issue of the RTAMS newsletter.