11/30/07
Since announcing the slow zone elimination plan in July, work to replace rail ties will allow the CTA to resume normal train speeds on nearly 60,000 feet of track by the end of 2007. As work is completed, customers are experiencing smoother, faster trips as speed restrictions continue to be lifted.
Completed to date:
Blue Line subway Damen to Clark/Lake - 18,000 feet removed
Red Line between Morse and Loyola - 2,775 feet removed
Red/Purple/Brown from Armitage to Diversey - 2,537 feet removed
Yellow Line Crawford Crossing - 2,000 feet removed
Completed by year end:
Red Line subway from Grand to Clark/Division - 8,000 feet removed
Red Line southbound from Wilson to Sheridan - 3,325 feet removed
Blue Line Harlem to Jefferson Park - 25,000 feet removed
Work is currently underway to remove 111,000 feet of Blue Line slow zones between Addison and O'Hare. The first phase ? 25,000 linear feet of track from Jefferson Park to Harlem - will be completed by the end of this year.
?We are putting the rapid back into transit," said CTA President Ron Huberman. ?Everyone at the CTA is focused on improving travel for customers and getting them where they want to go faster is a significant deliverable we can provide our riders."
The next phase of slow zone removal on the Blue Line from Harlem to O'Hare will begin in the spring, as weather permits, and will be completed by late summer. The final phase to eliminate slow zones from Jefferson Park to Addison will be completed by the end of 2008. The final two phases will remove approximately 86,000 feet of slow zones.
In 2008, more slow zone removal work is also planned for the Red, Purple, Brown and Green Lines and Loop Elevated.
"The CTA system is an aging one and requires an enormous capital investment to reach and maintain a state of good repair. But of all our capital needs, removing slow zones is our top priority," said Huberman. ?It makes a tremendous difference in the quality of service we provide to our customers and it is a very necessary investment."
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