CHICAGO, IL — Mayor Brandon Johnson joined Senator Dick Durbin, Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) Acting President Nora Leerhsen, and other dignitaries to break ground on the largest capital construction project in CTA history, the Red Line Extension (RLE) Project. The project will provide the Far South Side of Chicago with rapid rail transit for the first time and extend the Red Line by 5.5 miles from 95th Street to 130th Street, including building four new Red Line stations at 103rd, 111th, Michigan, and 130th streets.
“This historic CTA project finally delivers on the transit promises made to the residents of Roseland, Pullman, Washington Heights, and surrounding neighborhoods decades ago,” Leerhsen said. “We are grateful to our many partners in federal, state, and city government, who have fought alongside our agency to make this transformative project a reality. It will provide tremendous opportunity and access to employment and education for hundreds of thousands of residents on the Far South Side.”
The RLE project will:
- Build a 5.5-mile extension of the Red Line starting at 95th Street Terminal to the vicinity of 130th Street
- Include four new accessible stations near 103rd Street, 111th Street, Michigan Avenue (near 116th), and 130th Street, each of which would include bus, bike, pedestrian, and parking facilities
- Build a new rail yard and related rail facilities near 120th Street to improve operational efficiency for the entire Red Line and CTA system
The design-build contractor for the project is Walsh-VINCI Transit Community Partners. Advance construction work has been underway to prepare the project for construction, including demolition of properties acquired to build the project and relocation of utility poles and other equipment where the new track will be built.
| Your local Bobcat dealer |
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| O'Leary's Contractors Equipment & Supply |
| O'Leary's Contractors Equipment & Supply |
Upcoming work will include:
- Drilling where new elevated track columns will be located
- Pouring concrete to create the new track foundations, followed by track columns
- Station construction, beginning in 2027
The new extension and stations are expected to be completed and in service in 2030.
The Red Line Extension Project will provide significant benefits to the area, including:
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| Brandeis Machinery |
| Brandeis Machinery |
- The project will provide a new, more direct connection to the Red Line, which means an easier trip and less time commuting.
- Once the extension opens, it is expected to provide up to an hour of time savings roundtrip to riders traveling between the future 130th station and the Loop.
- Stations will offer plaza areas that will include seating and other amenities for residents.
- All stations will receive commissioned, one-of-a-kind artwork that will be developed with feedback from people in the neighborhood areas around the stations.
- More than 12,500 construction jobs and an estimated 59,800 indirect jobs are expected to be created.
- Because of the improved transit options, an estimated 25,000 additional jobs will become available within an hour commute or less.
