This crisscross of freight and passenger tracks on Chicago’s South Side causes conflicts and delays for trains across the region. A federal grant announced this week will help fund bridges and new track to fix the train gridlock.
Daily Herald file photo
The Chicago region secured over $305 million in separate federal grants to fix expressway and railway gridlock, officials announced Friday.
Nearly $210 million is designated to improve a track tangle on Chicago’s South Side that slows Metra and freight trains, while more than $95 million is slated to upgrade the interchange of I-290 and First Avenue.
“Chicagoans will be better connected because of these two infrastructure projects, which will improve the safety and quality of our rail system and roadways,” said U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin in a statement.
The railway grant is a significant step in reducing train gridlock in Chicago, the nation’s busiest freight hub.
It will be steered to the 75th Street Corridor Improvement Project, a massive effort to separate about 90 freight, 30 Metra and two Amtrak daily trains that converge in the area by building two flyover bridges and other infrastructure. Fallout from the congestion impacts rail traffic across the U.S.
Ultimately, it could free up space at Union Station as Metra plans to move its Southwest Service Line to the LaSalle Street Station when one of the flyovers is completed.
The 75th Street corridor is estimated to cost over $1 billion, and $474 million has already been raised through federal, state, local and freight railroad contributions, bringing the total raised to about $780 million.
The corridor project is part of the Chicago Region Environmental and Transportation Efficiency program, a regional plan to reduce rail gridlock by updating the system.
The second project, located at I-290 and 1st Avenue near Maywood, is intended to rebuild parts of I-290 and modernize the interchange. Other improvements include local signal improvements and a trunk sewer along the expressway to alleviate serious flooding problems.
“Investing in our transportation infrastructure is about more than just improving our roads, bridges and rail lines, it’s about growing our economy and making getting to work, school and throughout our communities faster, safer and more efficient,” U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth said in a statement.
The grants are part of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Mega Program and will be managed by IDOT.