U.S. DOT gives go-ahead to begin some CREATE projects
Written by jrood
In February, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced $100 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds for projects to help reduce rail bottlenecks in the Chicago region. On July 22, the U.S. Department of Transportation and the Illinois Department of Transportation finalized a grant agreement for the CREATE (Chicago Region Environmental and Transportation Efficiency) program to begin work on those projects. Secretary LaHood said freight congestion mitigation projects include new traffic control systems, track and bridge work, a highway-rail grade separation and safety improvements on various rail viaducts.
"We are using Recovery
Act dollars to create jobs for breaking up freight bottlenecks that will help
get our economy moving," said Secretary LaHood. "These projects are vital
building blocks in America’s continuing economic recovery."
The $100-million grant is
from the U.S. Department of Transportation TIGER (Transportation Investment
Generating Economic Recovery) discretionary program, included in the Recovery
Act, to promote innovative, multi-modal and multi-jurisdictional transportation
projects that provide significant economic and environmental benefits to an
entire metropolitan area, region or the nation.
"We are helping to
promote trade and commerce in the Chicago region," Federal Highway
Administrator Victor Mendez said. "Improving mobility for goods and people will
lead to a quicker recovery and overall stronger economy."
About 25 percent of rail
traffic in the United States travels through the Chicago region, in some
instances taking longer to transit the city than the time it took to reach it
from the east or west coasts. The CREATE program focuses on alleviating major
bottlenecks along freight and passenger rail corridors. The most important
improvements within the program are the grade separations and the rail-to-rail
connections, which will benefit highway users and permit more seamless
connections between railroads.
"CREATE’s success is
America’s success," said FRA Administrator Joseph C. Szabo. "By improving the
flow of freight and people, rail traffic will move more safely and efficiently."
The five projects funded
by the TIGER grant are:
• Construction of
the Union Pacific third main line-Proviso Yard.
• Installation of a
traffic control system at La Grange/Broadview.
• Signalization of
Blue Island Yard running tracks.
• Construction of a highway-rail
grade separation structure at Indiana Harbor Belt and CSX Transportation grade
crossing at 71st Street.
• Fourteen
roadway/sidewalk/curb projects as part of the Viaduct Improvement Program to
enhance safety and security for motorists and pedestrians.
Overall, the CREATE program
includes more than 46 rail and 25 highway-rail grade separation projects that
involve restructuring, modernizing and expanding freight and passenger rail and
constructing new highway-rail grade separations in the Chicago metropolitan
area.
