Mayor Lori Lightfoot joined Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) President Dorval R. Carter Jr. this week to break ground on Phase One of the Red and Purple Modernization (RPM) Project.
The largest reconstruction project in the agency's history, CTA's RPM Phase One project is designed to modernize and replace century-old rail structures and stations. This is the latest project to modernize the Red Line, CTA’s busiest line that serves more than 30% of all rail customers.
“Today is a historic day for Chicago transit as we begin the largest project in CTA history to modernize CTA rail service for the next century and rebuild the Red Line, the CTA’s busiest line,” Mayor Lightfoot said in a statement this week. "Public transit is the great connector of our city—and with this monumental project, we are building on our obligation to ensure Chicago’s transportation network is accessible, reliable, and affordable for all residents of this city so that our neighborhoods and communities are connected to jobs, education and opportunity."
CTA is beginning construction on the new Red-Purple Bypass to unclog a 100-year-old junction where Red, Purple, and Brown Line trains currently intersect. A major component of RPM Phase One, the Bypass construction will also rebuild four Red Line stations and a century-old rail structure between the Lawrence and Bryn Mawr Red Line stations.
The CTA's Red Line provides more than 200,000 rides on average each weekday and more than 70 million rides a year, serving some of the most densely populated neighborhoods in the nation. Work performed as part of the $2.1 billion RPM Phase One project will make commuting better for all CTA riders with improved service and modern rail stations that are fully accessible to people with disabilities. All RPM Phase One work will be completed in 2025.
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SOURCE: Office of Mayor Lightfoot
IMAGE: Image: Cragin Spring [CC BY-SA 2.0] via Wikimedia Commons
