Start 7: Brown Line Upgrade
Cost: $530 million

The Chicago Transit Authority's Brown Line has seen the highest rate of growth of any route in the system.

Since 1979, ridership has increased 83 percent, said Robyn Ziegler, a CTA spokeswoman. On average, the 19-station line serves more than 66,000 passengers each weekday.

Brown Line stations presently accommodate six-car trains with the exception of Merchandise Mart, Fullerton and Belmont stops, which hold eight-car trains.

The project will include the expansion of 16 stations to handle eight-car trains to alleviate crowding and improve passenger flow. Overall, 18 stations will be renovated.

Project Reorganized

In May 2004, the CTA received construction bids for the project that exceeded the budget, making it necessary to identify $152 million worth of cost savings, Ziegler said. The project was reorganized into five packages to attract competitive bids.

The first package to go out for bid is Belmont/Fullerton, pending approval from funding agencies.

Temporary closures of some stations will also be implemented during construction to stay within budget and preserve amenities planned for neighborhood stations, Ziegler said. Planned temporary station closures will save an estimated $22 million.

Three stations - Fullerton, Belmont and Western - will remain open throughout construction, and Armitage, Sedgwick and Chicago will remain open on weekdays.

Work began in fall 2004 to upgrade the signal system from Kimball to Western avenues and involves installing signal equipment along the tracks, installing six new crossing gates and circuitry where the Brown Line crosses at street level and rehabilitating the Kimball Tower, Ziegler said.

At Clark Junction - where the Brown, Purple and Red Line tracks merge just north of the Belmont station - a new signal system will be installed, signals for 14 rail crossovers will be provided and the Clark Tower at the junction will be rehabilitated.

Multiple design firms have been hired for the project, each responsible for specific stations, but they are working in collaboration to create a unified effect.

The CTA is working with the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency to handle some of the historic elements of eight stations.

The project's funding agreement with the federal government requires that work be complete by the end of 2009. In a separate agreement, the Federal Transit Administration requires that work to make the Fullerton station accessible be complete by the end of 2008.

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