hey \Viva, for the airport express trains, couldn't they use the existing crossovers before/end of the existing stations ( instead of pass arounds) where if a blocking train in path of direction is at the station and the opposite side is vacant, then just use the crossover and hold any opposite train at bay until the airport xpress has cleared?

Taggers, slash property destruction.

While riding the Orange Line into the Loop today I had the great fortune of being seated behind two youths of pursasion who had camera in hand and talked loudly on full train of possible and great opps of new tagging. All in view of a passe soon to me cta motorman who couldn't wait to get home.

Anyway.... CTA . Chicago. As soon as you repaint tagging, monitor it because that's what they go for, blank space. lawmen, hit male taggers eswhere it will kill, revoke drivers licence. All these cams the city puts up, there is nothing on cta trains, right of ways. CTA station masters are usually to busy being talky lazy on the lower level to be patrolling the upper level platform.... but what do you expect from a cta lifer?

This would require alot of money to install high-speed crossovers (most of CTAs crossovers are rated for 15mph, which sort of defeats the purpose of high-speed service) before and after every station. On rush hour headways this would all be very disruptive to trains headed both directions.

Carroll Avenue Circulator
 

Over in the 200 N. Riverside thread, I was speculating that the Carroll Avenue circulator might get a needed push due to the construction that is booming along its path: 200 N. Riverside, possible mega-project at Wolf Point, 300 N. LaSalle, 353 N. Clark, Trump Tower, Cityfront Plaza development, even the Carley site east of Columbus.

All of these developments are occurring along this route, and I wonder if anyone knows how this will play into the possibility of this happening? What do people think? Will the developers and tenants put pressure on the city to increase transit access, once all of this is finished (that's my hunch)? Should the city have been more proactive, requesting developers to allocate space within their buildings for transit stations or to pitch into a transit fund? If I recall, the city did make special requests at Trump Tower for underground constructon not to interfere with the right-of-way.

Where does the plan stand at the moment, anyway? It seems like ages since I've heard anything about it....

Here's a CDOT document from Nov, 2006 that shows the routes being studied, and the rather obvious "conclusions" drawn from the surveys that were taken last year. http://www.railvolution.com/rv2006_pdfs/rv2006_200a.pdf

PS - I don't know how they are thinking of putting this thing on Michigan Avenue, but I think that sounds like a miserable idea, unless it's underground.

No we need to start sueing families for such ignorance. They called it an accident. How does a person walking around or driving around flashing and dinging rail arms constitute an accident. It is called stupidity. Sad...but that this is a prime example of the survival of the fittest.

Now now, let's not take everything regarding transit that the Japanese do...

Dangerous crossings
 

I am all for closing all grade level crossings when there is a train related fatality.
Starting the day after they close each street that has an auto related fatality.

seems like the Friends of Downtown brought it up in a February meeting as part of their Central Area action plan:

http://www.friendsofdowntown.org/Cen...ion%20Plan.pdf

OT -
What caught my eye on either p.10 or 11 was the Lakefront Expansion Plans from Olive Park to North Ave. Even though I have thought that those stretches need some greenery and some sprucing up along the mostly concrete paths I haven't heard of any concrete proposal to do as such. Nice to see. Those sketches make it look real nice. Also the first time I remember seeing a sketch for the park replacement for the River North post office.

That was a presentation about the Central Area Action Plan to the Friends of Downtown, not by Friends of Downtown. CAAP is a city initiative.

doh! my bad. thanks for the clarification.

(i should have read the event description:

)

i hate our state government.

House Speaker: Expect State Budget Vote Wednesday
State Will Not Be Able To Pay Almost 5,000 Employees If Budget Not Passed By Aug. 8

(CBS) CHICAGO Labor leaders want a judge to force the State of Illinois to pay almost 5,000 employees next week, even if a new budget is not approved by the deadline on Wednesday.

...


House Speaker Michael Madigan told Democratic representatives late Monday to expect a budget vote as early as Wednesday. Sources tell CBS 2 that Madigan's budget proposal does not include the cash that the Chicago Transit Authority said it needs to avert nearly 1,100 layoffs and huge service cuts.

Link

madigan's email:

mmadigan@hds.ilga.gov

please write him and say the rta needs support.

^ This Madigan/Blago thing is so damn disgusting. I think they both need to be recalled.

What a fucking waste. Republicans are probably laughing at how inneffectual this Democrat-run state is right now.

How the hell is Daley going to explain to the Olympic Committee that his transit system is rotting?

Chicago needs to take this transit issue into its own hands.

CTA approves plan in case of shortfall
By Jon Hilkevitch | Tribune transportation reporter
12:21 PM CDT, August 8, 2007

The CTA today approved a doomsday plan that will take effect in September if a state funding package is not approved by the General Assembly.


Link, Chicago Tribune

olympics? suuure ...

chicago boom rundown? that will be a lonely thread ...

even the chicago spire? the tenants there would probably be driven around, but will they pay to live in a city whose central business district will be a lot less lively when the spire opens its doors in 4 years?

very depressing. i know this is a discussion forum, but all chicago forumers, and any forumers who enjoy visiting chicago, please write your representative, senator, or, i guess for any out-of-towners, the governor. a good name to know is julie hamos. beg her to get her funding bill through somehow ...

world class, indeed.

I'm pissed. I sent an email. This is ridiculous.

I am considering moving to Chicago but I am just going to move to New York if transit service cuts happen. This is the most obvious rejection of needed progressivism I have seen in a long time. Chicago transit's capital improvements have been underfunded for years. The system currently operates on a far smaller operating budget for its size compared to its peers. Chicago is a green, world class city? Yeah right.

^^^ Have the Trib/Sun-Times/Reader written editorials about this? I don't think there's a bigger crisis facing Chicago today.

I need to move back so I can help vote out the morons who're letting this happen ...

^ The only paper that has fully pressed this issue is Crains.

I'm clinging with hope to a vow Blagojevich made to veto any bill that does not include a funding bailout for Chicago's transit agencies. But the problem is, nobody can agree on a funding solution. Republicans want money for roads and bridges attached to any transit bailout; what a bunch of goddamn dolts. We have a transit crisis here, can you not see that?

Now for a bit of good news, I found this article. I only included the portion that I found rather interesting:

http://www.nearwestgazette.com/Archi.../News0807b.htm
RFMA gets METRA to help improve railroad crossings

By Patrick Butler


Romanelli described the track renovation as one of several recent RFMA accomplishments. "Another was helping to persuade the CTA to put a new Green Line station at Morgan and Lake," he said, noting the RFMA also is doing a diagonal parking feasibility study in some places along the Kinzie Industrial Corridor.

"This is going to improve the efficiency of the companies here," Romanelli asserted. "We're getting more businesses in this area—more office space, retail, art galleries, and even some residents moving into the area. Our goal is to modernize business conditions to retain our businesses for generations to come and not lose them to the suburbs, and to make sure the City sticks with its 2009 timeline for completing the Morgan/Lake station."

^ The Morgan/Lake station is in the design stage....it's definitely chugging along. But it's primarily a CDOT project.

I just sent Madigan an email voicing my displeasure over press articles indicating his budget proposal doesn't include the funding needed for CTA. I may be a hardcore Democrat, but he won't see a single bit of support from me in the future when it comes time for his reelection.

alright, kiddies, the budget passed the house with not one red cent for transit.

please go here: http://savechicagolandtransit.com/actnow.asp

call your rep and ask where the money for transit is. call your senator and ask him or her to veto this budget. call republican senate leader tom cross to veto this bill. call governor blagojevich's office, no matter what you think of him, and ask that he veto this bill -- to his credit, he said he would veto any bill that did not provide for the cta/rta.

time to take action here. just go to that link and most of the work is done for you, and they provide numbers.