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For January 2014, this is CTA News in Review.
Following last fall's successful completion of the Red Line South Reconstruction Project,
the Chicago Transit Board awarded contracts to local artists and an artist team to create
new, original artwork that will be installed at eight train stations rehabilitated under
the historic project. The new art will complement existing artwork
at the Sox-35th, 47th, Garfield, 63rd, 69th, 79th and 87th stations. The art that is commissioned
for Cermak-Chinatown will be that station's first artwork.
The CTA more than doubled the number of U.S. military veterans hired by the agency in 2013,
the result of President Forrest Claypool's efforts to promote and expand the hiring of
veterans. In 2013, the CTA hired 194 military veterans, bringing the total number of veterans
working for the agency to 353. Veterans have joined the CTA in a wide variety of positions,
from bus operators and flagmen to mechanics and customer-service assistants. Seventeen
veterans now serve in manager or coordinator positions.
The Chicago Transit Board today approved a $23 million plan to rehabilitate and improve
the accessibility of the Blue Line's Illinois Medical District CTA station by making all
three station entrances accessible to customers with disabilities and additional upgrades,
using $23 million of city TIF funds made available through Mayor Rahm Emanuel's "Chicago Neighborhoods
Now" program.
Over the last five years, ridership at the IMD Blue Line station has increased by 53
percent, to nearly 1.1 million station entries last year, making IMD the third-busiest station
on the Blue Line's West Side Forest Park branch.
Sen. *** Durbin was joined by Mayor Emanuel, CTA President Claypool and Congressman Mike
Quigley to discuss Durbin's success in ensuring $120 million of federal funding for the Federal
Transit Administration's so-called Core Capacity Program.
This is significant for the CTA because, to date, the CTA's proposed Red Purple Modernization
program is the only project that has been formally accepted into project development
for Core Capacity. The Red Purple Modernization program, also known as RPM, would rebuild
the entire Red and Purple Lines north of Belmont.
The Red and Purple Lines in this area are already at capacity, with packed trains and
platforms on infrastructure that in many areas is more than a century old. The corridor carries
20% of all CTA rides and serves residents in some of the densest city neighborhoods
in the United States.
Thanks to Sen. Durbin's hard work, Core Capacity funds would help allow the CTA to ultimately
expand capacity on the Purple and Red for not only today, but for the next 60 years.
On November 5, 2013, the CTA announced new measures of accountability for Ventra's contractor,
Cubic Transportation Systems. Performance in every category has improved dramatically
since November, with performance standards being met as of January 1, 2014. The CTA continues
to monitor Ventra's performance closely to ensure consistency. For more Ventra performance
updates go to transitchicago.com.