11/14/07
Motorists Should Expect Congestion Due to Weekend Lane Closures on Kennedy
The CTA continues to make progress in completing rail tie replacement work to eliminate slow zones in the Red Line's State Street subway, along the Clark Junction corridor and on the O'Hare branch of the Blue Line. As a result of the work completed this past weekend slow zone restrictions were lifted on 25,000 feet, or nearly 5 miles, of track.
"Customers are noticing the improved travel times on the Red, Brown, Purple and Blue Lines and can see the payoff their patience and this investment in the system are making," said CTA President Ron Huberman. ?As work is completed speed restrictions are incrementally being lifted along sections of track. This allows trains to resume normal speeds, which makes a big difference on stretches where trains have been crawling."
Train speed has increased on the Red Line in the subway from Grand to Clark/Division, on the Blue Line between Montrose and Jefferson Park, along one mile of track from Jefferson Park to Harlem and along the Clark Junction corridor from Diversey to Southport.
Weekend Lane Closures ? Weekend Service Suspension
As work continues, rail service between the Jefferson Park and Harlem Blue Line stations will be temporarily suspended from 9 p.m. Friday, November 16 to 3 a.m. Monday, November 19 to replace deteriorated rail ties, tie plates and spikes. Bus shuttles will operate as a substitute for rail service between the two stations. In addition, to help speed work, the inner most eastbound lane of traffic will be closed on the Kennedy Expressway from Jefferson Park to Harlem from 10 p.m. Friday night until 6 a.m. Sunday morning. On recent weekends, lane closures have occurred overnight, but this weekend the closure will continue all day Saturday, November 17 and into Sunday morning.
From midnight Friday to 6 a.m. Saturday and again from midnight Saturday to 6 a.m. Sunday, two inbound lanes will be closed to traffic.
Motorists should expect additional traffic congestion throughout the area.
The work from Jefferson Park to Harlem will be completed by the end of this year and eliminate more than 25,000 feet of slow zones. The work is part of an aggressive plan to eliminate slow zones on the O'Hare branch of the Blue Line and redesign the tracks to allow trains to reach speeds above 60 mph.
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