CHICAGO: Transit Developments - Page 820

twister244 · #**16381** Posted **Mar 18, 2024, 7:57 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Randomguy34

Holy shit, RTA is flexing their ability to bypass municipalities' home rule after transit advocates pointed out Chicago/Halsted's redesign being auto-centric. They're now calling for bus lanes in both directions for the surrounding intersection. This is a major paradigm shift for the RTA. This could be the start of RTA pushing bus lanes across the city without needing CDOT's approval!

https://www.rtachicago.org/uploads/f...d_bus_memo.pdf

More cow bell please.....

As much as we all love to see shiny new train lines, BRT is the path of least resistance of getting more rapid transit options to folks in the city.

nomarandlee · #**16382** Posted **Mar 19, 2024, 9:43 PM**

Quote:

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2024/...i5hPXUIHHm9TqM

With more funding rolling in and planning underway, a redesign of Chicago Union Station is moving forward

The aging station, last renovated in 1991, is in line to get nearly $134 million in federal funding for the project so far.

The project is expected to include overhauling the concourse to improve the way passengers move through the area, renovating and expanding station platforms — including those on the south concourse used primarily by Metra’s BNSF line — and bringing platforms into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Amtrak also hopes to rehab old, unused platforms that once served trains carrying U.S. Postal Service mail, now littered with the remnants of decaying booths and unneeded station infrastructure, and the tracks alongside used to store trains. Returning the platforms to service would expand the station’s train capacity......

Amtrak was awarded up to $93.6 million in federal grants in December for the project and is in line for another $40 million for Union Station in the federal budget. Still, in an earlier 2022 grant application, Amtrak sought $251 million for the project, which at the time was expected to cover more than half the cost of construction.

Magliari said the estimated costs at that time included track construction outside the station intended to shorten the running time of some trains and reshuffle the tracks on which they run. The passenger rail service is seeking more money for work both at Union Station and for the tracks connecting to it, Magliari said. He declined to specify how much more funding could be needed for the station, saying the total cost will depend on the design work that is underway......

..

Randomguy34 · #**16383** Posted **Apr 1, 2024, 8:10 PM**

The IMD is floating plans to add protected bike lanes, curb bumpouts, remove curb cuts, and close short sections of streets for pedestrian plazas. This would go a long way towards improving the streetscape: https://blockclubchicago.org/2024/04...ians-cyclists/

Randomguy34 · #**16384** Posted **Apr 6, 2024, 7:51 PM**

Metra is equalizing BNSF's Saturday and Sunday schedules and adding additional trains starting April 29th. This now means roundtrip weekday service is hourly or less, and roundtrip weekend service is almost hourly! I've been impressed, and honestly proud, with Metra the past few years. They've been serious about becoming a regional rail agency

New BNSF schedule: https://schedules.metrarail.com/pdf/...ative/BNSF.pdf

Busy Bee · #**16385** Posted **Apr 6, 2024, 8:27 PM**

Maybe they've been sending an executive or board member to Toronto to ride GO and come back ashamed?

twister244 · #**16386** Posted **Apr 6, 2024, 9:23 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Randomguy34

Metra is equalizing BNSF's Saturday and Sunday schedules and adding additional trains starting April 29th. This now means roundtrip weekday service is hourly or less, and roundtrip weekend service is almost hourly! I've been impressed, and honestly proud, with Metra the past few years. They've been serious about becoming a regional rail agency

New BNSF schedule: https://schedules.metrarail.com/pdf/...ative/BNSF.pdf

Great news..... Chicago has a major benefit of having rail infrastructure already in place that we can ramp up without the need for super expensive new investments.

SIGSEGV · #**16387** Posted **Apr 6, 2024, 10:44 PM**

The real travesty are the lines that don't run on weekends at all, IMO.

orulz · #**16388** Posted **Apr 8, 2024, 1:08 PM**

The 2 hour gap in the inbound weekend schedule between the 12:05 and 2:05 departures from Aurora still doesn't make sense to me.

It seems like it would be so easy to just fill those gaps by running one more train on Saturday and another on Sunday. Are those two, 2-hour gaps each week, somehow ESSENTIAL for BNSF's national freight operations? Or is it just the vestiges of "Old Metra" acting like a commuter railroad, where keeping schedules regular is not all that important during mid day? But it seems like they are taking strides to break away from that past - so why? What is it with the 1pm gap on weekends? From a passenger perspective that seems like it could be a fairly busy time for the train. So why don't they just run another train?

Mr Downtown · #**16389** Posted **Apr 11, 2024, 3:04 PM**

^Not sure exactly, but you don't just "run another train." It has to be staffed.

It could be that BNSF feels it serves more people to have the afternoon crews stay later into the evening, or it could be that the midday crews both take their mandated lunch breaks at that time because they're at terminals rather than out on the road.

Randomguy34 · #**16390** Posted **Apr 11, 2024, 10:43 PM**

The RTA is applying for a grant to purchase MORE battery-electric trainsets for the RID, UP-N, and MD-W/NCS. The goal is to run more frequent local service to Blue Island, Wilmette, and O'Hare. Metra is slowly becoming Chicago's rapid transit service, while the CTA is decaying into a commuter rail service

https://www.rtachicago.org/uploads/f...ectSummary.pdf

twister244 · #**16391** Posted **Apr 12, 2024, 12:52 AM**

I find it interesting the NCS doesn't run more often, and maybe this is a move in that direction. It makes sense 15 years ago before we had a multi-modal facility with a people mover at O'Hare that can take you to the main terminals, but if Chicago is serious about a rapid option to O'hare without building new infrastructure on the Blue Line, this would be the path of least resistance.

OhioGuy · #**16392** Posted **Apr 16, 2024, 11:42 AM**

Any new word on when State/Lake will close to be rebuilt into a modern station?

According to this video from the CTA at the beginning of the year (at 39 seconds), work is supposed to begin on State/Lake this year. However, I haven't seen any additional information (including any updated renderings of the station design) since the announcement back in 2021.

• Video Link

Steely Dan · #**16393** Posted **Apr 16, 2024, 11:54 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Randomguy34

The RTA is applying for a grant to purchase MORE battery-electric trainsets for the RID, UP-N, and MD-W/NCS. The goal is to run more frequent local service to Blue Island, Wilmette, and O'Hare.

Ohhhh!

A more frequent early morning schedule on the UP-N could possibly persuade me off the brown line.

Randomguy34 · #**16394** Posted **Apr 16, 2024, 1:31 PM**

^ Since I live along the MED, it's been faster for me to get up north by taking the line to Millennium Station, walking or Divvying to Ogilvie, and taking the UP-N before my ticket expires, than relying on the CTA. It's a ridiculous setup, but the weekday schedules are reliable enough that I can get from Woodlawn/Hyde Park to Uptown/Rogers Park in just under an hour. If Metra and Amtrak can finally get funding for CHIP, then hopefully the MED can access Union Station and make the journey to Ogilvie more reasonable

Steely Dan · #**16395** Posted **Apr 16, 2024, 2:07 PM**

^ the UP-N is faster than the brown line for my Lincoln Square to the loop daily commute.

But the current early morning schedule sucks.

There's one train that gets into ogilvie at 6:25 am and then the next one gets in at 7:25am.

My workday starts at 7:00am.

Brown line it is.

Klippenstein · #**16396** Posted **Yesterday, 3:16 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Randomguy34

^ Since I live along the MED, it's been faster for me to get up north by taking the line to Millennium Station, walking or Divvying to Ogilvie, and taking the UP-N before my ticket expires, than relying on the CTA. It's a ridiculous setup, but the weekday schedules are reliable enough that I can get from Woodlawn/Hyde Park to Uptown/Rogers Park in just under an hour. If Metra and Amtrak can finally get funding for CHIP, then hopefully the MED can access Union Station and make the journey to Ogilvie more reasonable

I do the same thing except from South Chicago. UP-N is so much faster. I can get up to Evanston in about an hour total, which is not much longer than driving. This only works because I sprint on my bike from Van Buren to Ogilvie in 10 minutes or less. It's pretty stressful especially because the "or less" is because the train is usually behind schedule.

All of that to say, I can't wait for the day there's a connection to Union Station.

Mr Downtown · #**16397** Posted **Yesterday, 1:25 PM**

Fellow transit geeks:

I’m hosting another transit+urbanism salon: Friday evening, April 19. 6 pm, 899 S. Plymouth (9th & State). Details at https://chicagoinmaps.com/salon.html