CHICAGO: Transit Developments

[ardecila]

I honestly feel bad for Biagi - she got scapegoated for all of Lightfoot's incoherent transportation policies over the last four years. Public servants, even department commissioners, simply don't have the latitude to act on their own no matter how much experience they have or how well-intentioned they are. I'm very happy that pedestrian/cyclist/transit advocacy has become a stronger political force in the city, but I don't think it was helpful or productive to vilify her.

Biagi was great at Studio Gang and managing the buildout of Maggie Daley Park. I'm sure she will find another place to land...

[CaptainJilliams]

Not sure if this was posted here yet, but I saw it on the Chicago YIMBY forums and thought it was a good overview of the CrossRail proposal and its impact on midwest cities, specifically Chicago:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIPmGooGtuY&t=234s

[SolarWind]

August 15, 2023

[Bonsai Tree]

The proposals also include calling on the transit agencies to do their part by raising fares, combined with more funding for existing free and reduced-fare programs, expanding subsidies to include lower-income riders, and other measures to keep fares affordable.

The committees hashing out the proposals are eyeing three potential sets of recommendations that come with different pricetags, ranging from $500 million to $1.5 billion in new public funding. All also call for either $200 million or $250 million from the transit agencies through fare revenue or savings.

They could recommend the additional public funding include more state money for existing free and reduced-fare programs, which the state currently only partially funds, and increased money for ADA paratransit service.

They are eyeing expanding the sales tax to include some types of services — though it would not include taxes on housing, utilities or health care, Wilkison said — and potentially also raising the rate that goes to Chicago-area transit, though that could be paired with lowering the rate in the rest of the state.

But expanding the sales tax alone won’t raise enough money, Wilkison said. The committee is considering other types of funding, including more fees on drivers such as a surcharge on vehicle registration costs that would go directly to transit.

The service and funding changes would likely be paired with recommendations to change the way transit is overseen in the region. Currently, the CTA, Metra and Pace are each operated by a separate agency, and the Regional Transportation Authority coordinates financing.

The recommendations could include simply strengthening the RTA and keeping the separate agencies, or folding the three transit agencies into one regional agency.

CMAP’s focus on the recommendations will be on transportation reliability, frequency and access, issues that have been key concerns for riders since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Ensuring those measures will be key to meeting the region’s climate goals, and boosting the economy, Wilkison said.

“That’s really what people want. They want access to transit, reliability and frequency,” she said. “And we’re not going to get to any of those if we can’t fund it appropriately.”

https://www.chicagotribune.com/busin...tum-story.html

I'll believe it when I see it. At least there is a conversation moving forward, and I feel like now is the right time to have it (with the state government being in a good place).

[VKChaz]

Originally Posted by CaptainJilliams

Not sure if this was posted here yet, but I saw it on the Chicago YIMBY forums and thought it was a good overview of the CrossRail proposal and its impact on midwest cities, specifically Chicago:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIPmGooGtuY&t=234s

Wasn't a developer planning a building that would cut off an HSR corridor? Any idea what happened with that and would it affect this kind of proposal?

[Roy_Batty]

Originally Posted by CaptainJilliams

Not sure if this was posted here yet, but I saw it on the Chicago YIMBY forums and thought it was a good overview of the CrossRail proposal and its impact on midwest cities, specifically Chicago:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIPmGooGtuY&t=234s

Who is leading this project? Amtrak?

[SolarWind]

August 29, 2023

[aprice1828]

Originally Posted by Roy_Batty

Who is leading this project? Amtrak?

https://youtu.be/SeRwh2Wpww8?si=_LN7Jg82Chjj-_FQ They mention in this video that these projects are being looked at or are in planning by various railroad owners and agencies. The High Speed Rail Alliance (which is very Chicago-centric btw) is advocating for these projects to be seen as one effort and be coordinated to improve Amtrak and Metra service.

[nomarandlee]

Originally Posted by SolarWind

August 29, 2023

Good lord. So. Much. Space.

[lakeshoredrive]

Originally Posted by nomarandlee

Good lord. So. Much. Space.

It's kinda ridiculous isn't it?

[left of center]

Wish it could be used for some sort of express service, but that wide median narrows by the time you get to Sacramento, so it would be probably unrealistic to widen the rest of the Blue Line ROW. The O'Hare branch of the Blue is much busier than the Forest Park branch, and would be much more deserving of an express option, especially since it would link the airport with the Loop. That is even less likely to happen, given the limitations of the O'Hare branch ROW. (Best bet is for an airport express would probably run on the NCS ROW)

[SIGSEGV]

Originally Posted by left of center

Wish it could be used for some sort of express service, but that wide median narrows by the time you get to Sacramento, so it would be probably unrealistic to widen the rest of the Blue Line ROW. The O'Hare branch of the Blue is much busier than the Forest Park branch, and would be much more deserving of an express option, especially since it would link the airport with the Loop. That is even less likely to happen, given the limitations of the O'Hare branch ROW. (Best bet is for an airport express would probably run on the NCS ROW)

I guess theoretically you could run an O'Hare express service down the Eisenhower and then up the Altenheim Subdivision? Not sure how in use that is or if it can be double tracked the whole way...

[ardecila]

Originally Posted by SIGSEGV

I guess theoretically you could run an O'Hare express service down the Eisenhower and then up the Altenheim Subdivision? Not sure how in use that is or if it can be double tracked the whole way...

This has always been my preferred alignment to O'Hare if money was no object, but I think you'd have a huge battle with River Forest. Another advantage is that you could set up Forest Park or Harlem as an intermediate stop with a big parking garage - this is especially useful if the trains go into the terminal complex instead of O'Hare Transfer which sucks.

That said, I think NCS is not a bad alignment, it can be triple or quad tracked similar to Toronto's Pearson Express. The key to that is rebuilding A-2 with a flyover so it can handle frequent trains throughout the day, and Metra needs to do that anyway.

[twister244]

Originally Posted by ardecila

That said, I think NCS is not a bad alignment, it can be triple or quad tracked similar to Toronto's Pearson Express. The key to that is rebuilding A-2 with a flyover so it can handle frequent trains throughout the day, and Metra needs to do that anyway.

Yeah, I feel like NCS is the better way to go. I'm not a Metra expert, but it seems like it would be easier to add express trains to a set of tracks that isn't already packed with normal routes (like the Blue line). The only caveat is the current O'Hare station is way over by the multi-modal facility, so travelers would need to walk around and get onto the people mover, where the Blue Line lets you off right in front of the terminals without any need to take a people mover, unless you are going to T5.

[Mr Downtown]

CP (NCS) is a Class I headache that doesn't get you where you want to go anyway.

Metra already owns the Milw-W all the way out to Bensenville Yard. Branch off from there.

[left of center]

^ That would be the dream. I got to imagine that tunneling over a mile under active runways would be nightmarishly expensive however. I don't see our pols having an appetite for something like that anytime soon, despite the overwhelming economic benefits it would provide.

Wish we could have saved that worthless Block 37 "super station" money and put it towards this project. Instead, all we got was a useless station platform, and the closure of the Washington Red line station and the transfer tunnel to the Blue Line. And because its not being used, the city at some point will be responsible in paying the Feds back for their portion of that transit funding IIRC.

[Mister Uptempo]

Originally Posted by SIGSEGV

I guess theoretically you could run an O'Hare express service down the Eisenhower and then up the Altenheim Subdivision? Not sure how in use that is or if it can be double tracked the whole way...

The High Speed Rail Alliance recently suggested using the Altenheim Sub for pulling all CPKC freights off the MD-W line east of Franklin Park.

The freights would turn south onto CN's Waukesha Sub (Metra NCS runs on the Waukesha Sub north of MD-W), continue onto CSX's Altenheim Sub eastbound, then turn south onto CSX's Blue Island Sub (former B&O Chicago Terminal tracks) out of town.

If even more capacity is required, trains running south on the Blue Island Sub could connect to CSX's Elsdon Sub (former GTW) at 49th Street, which also continues south out of the city.

The Elsdon and Blue Island Subs converge in Blue Island, and can connect to the CSX Barr Sub eastbound into Indiana, CPKC already has trackage rights on the Barr Sub.

Rerouting the freights in this manner would still give CPKC full access to their Bensenville Yard just south of O'Hare.

While not as whiz-bang as turning the Altenheim into an airport express route, it might be the most practical way of separating passenger and freight traffic, opening up enough capacity to allow for an airport express on the MD-W and keep CPKC from being able to control dispatching on that line as far as O'Hare.

[lakeshoredrive]

I just saw the news about the funding for the red line extension.

[ardecila]

Originally Posted by Mr Downtown

CP (NCS) is a Class I headache that doesn't get you where you want to go anyway.

Metra already owns the Milw-W all the way out to Bensenville Yard. Branch off from there.

In an ideal world, sure.

But given the cost of tunneling in this country (especially for diesel trains) I think a better move is to simply build 2 dedicated tracks along NCS. Then you can widen I-190 to create space for Metra tracks next to the Blue Line. I-190 is supposed to be rebuilt anyway...

[left of center]

Originally Posted by lakeshoredrive

I just saw the news about the funding for the red line extension.

Just heard about it as well. $2 billion from the feds, half of the cost of construction.

https://abc7chicago.com/cta-chicago-...sion/13752649/