4/2/03
The Chicago Transit Board today approved a $4.5 million contract to renovate the 69th and 95th Street bus bridges as well as the bus turnaround at 95th Street, signaling the beginning of the rehabilitation of the Dan Ryan Branch of the Red Line. The entire project entails upgrading the infrastructure of the line and providing station improvements to some of the most heavily used stations in the system.
Bus bridges over the Dan Ryan Expressway at 69th and 95th Streets require rehabilitation of bridge supports, replacement of the bridge deck including busway pavement, curbs and walkways, refurbishment of barriers and fencing on the bridge, and installation of a new lighting system.
Steel girders will be cleaned and painted. The bus turnaround at 95th station will have all passenger islands, sidewalks and pavement replaced. The bridge and turnaround work will not significantly affect rail or expressway traffic. Repairs to abutments, piers, and retaining walls are expected to be minor. All improvements will conform to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
?The Dan Ryan Branch of the Red Line has not had any major rehabilitation work since the branch was built over thirty years ago," said CTA Chairman Valerie B. Jarrett. ?This project will improve both bus and rail transit for South Side customers as the CTA continues in its efforts to establish a state of good repair throughout the rail lines and bus fleet."
Eight stations located between Cermak Road and 87th Street will be upgraded as well. The work at each station will include replacing platform canopies, architectural components, escalators, station entrances and station houses, platform finishes, curb cuts and installing bus shelters.
"Customers will be able to see many of the improvements throughout the stations and will experience others through more reliable and efficient trips as a result of upgrades to signals, communications, track work and the installation of new contact rail," added Frank Kruesi, CTA President. ?The support the CTA has received from Mayor Richard M. Daley, U.S. House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert and many other elected officials at all levels of government acknowledges the importance of public transit."
The contract for work on this project was awarded to Chicago-based F.H. Paschen/S.N. Nielsen & Associates through a competitive bidding process.
Work on the bus bridge and bus turnaround at 69th and 95th Streets will start in spring 2003 and last until November 2003. All other Red Line rehab work will commence fall 2003 and last until fall 2005. The agency does not anticipate service interruptions as a result of the work.
The Red Line is the busiest rail line in the CTA rail system, totaling 64,730,009 rides in 2002. In addition, 187,286 were taken on an average weekday, 109,192 on an average Saturday, and 75,303 on an average Sunday in 2002.
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