Construction Contracts Awarded for Chicago Transit Authority's Largest Project Ever

A flyover to clear a bottleneck of trains serving the Red, Brown, and Purple lines is a key component of the massive modernization project planned by the Chicago Transit Authority.

1 minute read

December 13, 2018, 8:00 AM PST

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


CTA STation

D Guest Smith / Shutterstock

"The CTA board on Wednesday approved contracts for the largest and costliest construction project in CTA history: the massive $2.1 billion Red and Purple Line modernization," reports Mary Wisniweski.

"The board also approved a contract for preliminary work on an even larger project: the proposed $2.3 billion extension of the Red Line from 95th Street to 130th Street," adds Wisniweski.

The Red and Purple Line modernization project is expected to begin in fall 2019 and wrap up in 2025. Wisniweski includes the details of thwt exactly the CTA will be building for the project. Planetizen has been following the planned modernization project since it was first announced in 2014. Here are some of the highlight moments for the project on the path to this week's news.

As for the Red Line extension project, Wisniweski explains that the contract approved this week will allow for environmental reviews and preliminary engineering work. The CTA has not determined how it will pay for whatever plan emerges from these early efforts.

Wednesday, December 12, 2018 in Chicago Tribune

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