Englewood Flyover broke ground today – will save 7,500 hours of Metra delays annually

Updated October 11, 2011, to add link to Transportation Secretary LaHood’s blog.

Photo by ABC7 reported Charles Thomas, taken this morning. In this photo are Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Gabe Klein, and Governor Pat Quinn. 

I woke up this morning and saw Gabe Klein tweeting about a groundbreaking ceremony for CREATE P1 (known as the Englewood Flyover), one of the nation’s most important projects (actually a group of 67 projects). It separates freight from passenger rail traffic, and upgrades facilities for smoother and faster switching and travel. The Englewood Flyover will elevate Metra Rock Island District trains (north-south) over Norfolk Southern and Amtrak trains (east-west) in the Englewood and Grand Crossing neighborhoods.

According to the project description on the CREATE website“Metra riders experience more than 7,500 annual passenger hours of delay” – this will be eliminated.

The bridge will be built big enough to carry three tracks (where there are two now) over five tracks (where there are three now). The bridge will begin at about 5700 S LaSalle Street and end at about 6900 S Princeton Avenue. Recovery/stimulus money will pick up most of the construction tab:

The $133 million for the Englewood Flyover includes $126 million in federal funding leveraged through $6.6 million from Governor Quinn’s six-year, $31 billion Illinois Jobs Now!, the largest capital program in state history. A consortium of railroads involved in the CREATE program earlier contributed $3 million toward design costs. (Decatur Tribune)

Illinois Jobs Now! is the capital expenditure plan from Governor Quinn that was signed in 2009 and supported by bonds (debt), and fee and tax increases. The event was also an opportunity to promote President Obama’s American Jobs Act, as Transportation secretary Ray LaHood attended alongside Representative Dan Lipinski and other “politicos”.

Ray, on his Fast Lane blog, wrote more about the impact on jobs:

 A strict “Buy America” requirement ensures U.S. manufacturers and workers receive the maximum economic benefits from this federal investment.  This means that the Englewood flyover project will create nearly 1,500 jobs.

View Englewood Flyover in a larger map

Grid Bits: UP-North construction to restart, taxi drivers and street safety, new CTA Loop station

John and I are still gathering information for our Open Streets article, which will be co-written and published Tuesday. Also on Tuesday is another public meeting about the Bloomingdale Trail, where the designers and consultants will showcase the results of this past weekend’s open house and charrettes (I went on Saturday). I will publish an article about the Tuesday presentation on Thursday, October 6. There are five stories in this edition of Grid Bits.

Streets

(1) Taxi drivers

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Click on the photo to read the photographer’s caption. I found this by searching on Flickr for “stupid taxi chicago” in order to find people’s opinions. Photo by Nick Normal. 

The Chicago Tribune reported on September 23, 2011, that many of the tickets Chicago police give to taxi drivers are dismissed in court. When a taxi driver receives commits three moving violations in one year, they risk having their chauffeur’s license not renewed. Continue reading Grid Bits: UP-North construction to restart, taxi drivers and street safety, new CTA Loop station

Grid Bits: Englewood railroad yard; Metra asks passengers to watch conductors

In Grid Bits for Tuesday, September 20, 2011, Metra wants customers to report on customers and conductors who miss fares; Evanston wants to build an infill Yellow Line station; additional automobile crash analysis; Chicago police are looking for a hit-and-run driver; a railroad plans to expand by buying and demolishing homes in Englewood. There are 6 stories in this post.

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Photo of a 5000-series Chicago Transit Authority train car at Howard station by Eric Pancer.  Continue reading Grid Bits: Englewood railroad yard; Metra asks passengers to watch conductors

Would residents of northeastern Illinois tax themselves for transit?

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Mayor Emanuel shaking hands at the 95th Street station, the current terminal on the Red Line Dan Ryan branch. Photo by slow911.

Rahm Emanuel said he would help the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) find whatever money possible to fund an extension of the Red Line’s Dan Ryan branch to 130th Street. That project will have four new stations (view map); the construction will most likely be majority paid for by the federal  government (the capital costs). But the federal government won’t pay for the CTA’s new costs from operating the extension. Or any operating costs (note 1). The CTA and Mayor Emanuel are also pursuing bus rapid transit (BRT), a faster moving bus route. Continue reading Would residents of northeastern Illinois tax themselves for transit?

Grid Shots: New perspectives

Rahm Emanuel has been mayor for 100 days. Toni Preckwinkle has been Cook County president for 100 days. Forrest Claypool has been president of the Chicago Transit Authority for 100 days.

What has happened? What will happen?

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Looking west from the Damen Pink Line CTA station in Pilsen, Chicago. Photo by Chris Diers

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A Metra train at the Berwyn, Illinois, station. Photo by Sam Dickey

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A Green Line CTA train at about 4700 W Lake Street in Chicago. Photo by Gabriel Xavier Michael.

Add your photos to the Grid Chicago group on Flickr.

Transit riders to gain a louder voice in new campaign

Updated August 24/27, 2011: Active Transportation Alliance launched the Riders for Better Transit campaign today. Read the full agenda, which talks about different funding sources and modernizing Union Station. Take their survey by Sept. 30 and be entered into a raffle to receive a $100 Visa gift card. Ron Burke and Jennifer Henry (see her statement below) write a letter to the editor about the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority’s toll increase. 

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The Wilson Red Line CTA station was recently voted the worst station “for the third year in a row” by Chicago RedEye readers. Photo by Jeff Zoline.

In the next couple of days, the Chicago-based (but Chicagoland-focused) advocacy organization, Active Transportation Alliance, will launch a new permanent campaign called Riders For Better Transit. This is the Alliance’s first large-scale endeavor into improving transit since they changed their name and mission in late 2008 from focusing solely on bicycling. Their other transit advocacy includes supporting transit-friendly legislation in Springfield.

I sat down with Lee Crandell, Director of Campaigns, at his office (9 W Hubbard) on August 1, 2011, to learn more about this effort.

Continue reading Transit riders to gain a louder voice in new campaign