Chicago Transit Authority continues to commit funding to Red Line extension

The CTA Board approved funding for an environmental impact statement involving an extension of its Red Line.

File photo

The hope that Chicago Transit Authority’s (CTA) Red Line may run a little deeper in the future has not faded one bit. The CTA Board has decided to look into extending the Red Line from 95^th Street to 130^th Street, and approved $38 million for an environmental impact statement.

The last time the famous L line was stretched was back in 1993 with the Orange Line. Total cost for the Red Line extension could be as much as $2.3 billion. T.Y. Lin International Great Lakes will handle the $38 million job, which also includes planning and preliminary engineering for the project.

This is the third investment CTA has made for a Red Line extension in three years. In 2018, a $20.9 million contract was issued to HNTB Corp. for final environmental review and preliminary engineering work. Last year $310 million was approved to match federal funding.

“CTA is committed to ensuring that every community has access to public transit and we are focused on following the federally required process to make that a reality,” CTA President Dorval Carter said in a statement.

For the latest news, go to www.rtands.com.

More on light rail.