Will the CTA ever build a circle line? (Chicago: rail, suburbs)

[coldwine]

As a long-time citizen, I will answer the question: "No."

But that is not quite the truth. The answer is not between "yes" and "no", nor is it "will infrastructure investment in this project be worthwhile?" or anything rational.

You have to think like a politician. And their thoughts are more likely to be "The pandemic means closing schools, which means not having to hire more teachers, how much time does this buy me? How can this be used to address unfunded pension liabilities, whatever those words mean?"

Through the eyes of a politician, America's critically old and broken infrastructure is a jobs program. Money from feds to state, money from state to programs, programs to employees... Somewhere there's a transfer from public to private and there we find favors to donors.

I suppose I meant to say that the question being asked is not nearly cynical enough for its own good.

[OyCrumbler]

Circle Line could be fine, but I think there are better L expansions.


I think one thing that's odd is the relative lack of use of the express tracks where the L is quad-tracked on the North Side. I think the best thing to do would be for the Purple Line to use those express tracks all day and then goes underground as a subway to continue running underground down Halstead through to the South Side with all the connecting stations that are on Halstead with the other lines and allows for trips that aren't headed to the Loop to avoid it.


I think another good line would be one that makes it so that the Green Line goes only to the Woodlawn branch, but extended to the Metra 63rd street stop, and the Orange Line extended past Midway to then go east to Woodlawn and surfacing to use those Green Line Woodlawn stops as well.


If there was ever the budget, the political will and a much reduced tunnel boring costs, then I think the best thing for Chicago would be an Evanston to Blue Island subway under Western Ave with all the connections to existing L and Metra stops.

[TBideon]

How much is an average mile of new track in the US, $500 million?

A circle line is as likely as colonizing the moon. It just isn't financially viable.

[BRU67]

Originally Posted by OyCrumbler

Circle Line could be fine, but I think there are better L expansions.


I think one thing that's odd is the relative lack of use of the express tracks where the L is quad-tracked on the North Side. I think the best thing to do would be for the Purple Line to use those express tracks all day and then goes underground as a subway to continue running underground down Halstead through to the South Side with all the connecting stations that are on Halstead with the other lines and allows for trips that aren't headed to the Loop to avoid it.


I think another good line would be one that makes it so that the Green Line goes only to the Woodlawn branch, but extended to the Metra 63rd street stop, and the Orange Line extended past Midway to then go east to Woodlawn and surfacing to use those Green Line Woodlawn stops as well.


If there was ever the budget, the political will and a much reduced tunnel boring costs, then I think the best thing for Chicago would be an Evanston to Blue Island subway under Western Ave with all the connections to existing L and Metra stops.

A new N-S line down either Western, Pulaski, or Cicero makes the most sense, I agree. That seems to be the most efficient way to connect all the lines. Hopefully, with this huge cash influx and focus on infrastructure, our City planners are at least looking at this.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mid-City_Transitway

[aga412]

Originally Posted by BRU67

A new N-S line down either Western, Pulaski, or Cicero makes the most sense, I agree. That seems to be the most efficient way to connect all the lines. Hopefully, with this huge cash influx and focus on infrastructure, our City planners are at least looking at this.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mid-City_Transitway

They tend to only look at stupid things, but I would wholeheartedly, selfishly support something going down Pulaski (as I live right off of it that would make my life exponentially easier!).

I just really want a more northerly-bound Blue/Brown connection - is that too much to ask? Going E-W in the city would become so much easier that way. Even a Blue/Red connection further north than the loop at say, North and Clybourn would be ideal.

I may be silly, but why didn't anyone think of interconnectedness when building these things? Maybe that wasn't the idea "back in the day" but it would make flow so much better.

[BRU67]

Originally Posted by aga412

They tend to only look at stupid things, but I would wholeheartedly, selfishly support something going down Pulaski (as I live right off of it that would make my life exponentially easier!).

I just really want a more northerly-bound Blue/Brown connection - is that too much to ask? Going E-W in the city would become so much easier that way. Even a Blue/Red connection further north than the loop at say, North and Clybourn would be ideal.

I may be silly, but why didn't anyone think of interconnectedness when building these things? Maybe that wasn't the idea "back in the day" but it would make flow so much better.

I too live near Pulaski and I'd like that but I'd take Cicero or Western too! We have nothing that goes full N-S other than the Red Line, on the far eastern edge of the City. That needs to change. Cicero logically makes the most sense IMO, and seems to have the greatest shot of happening given land availability plus the natural connection with Midway. And today, there's less viable political opposition since we're now a one-party state and conservatives who are always against spending on inner-city infrastructure don't have much sway. That wasn't the case when the Mid-City Transitway project was deep sixed 20 years ago.

[Master Jay]

I accidentally posted this in another forum:

I really wish there was an L that cut north and south from the northside to the south side, along Western Avenue, for example.

The handful of times I made my excursion from the northside to Ignotz Ristorante on 24th and Oakley takes me 3 trains. And timewise, it WOULD be faster to just do the drive.

Every once in a while, I do like to sightsee, so I DO take the 3 train ride. But a north-south train in the middle of the city would be ideal!

[OyCrumbler]

Originally Posted by BRU67

A new N-S line down either Western, Pulaski, or Cicero makes the most sense, I agree. That seems to be the most efficient way to connect all the lines. Hopefully, with this huge cash influx and focus on infrastructure, our City planners are at least looking at this.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mid-City_Transitway

Definitely a new N-S line one any of those would make good sense. I only say that another N-S line, not in place of any of those mentioned, down Halstead makes sense because it can take advantage of the existing express tracks that the North Side has which otherwise serve only peak hours--that and it would hit the West Loop directly without a transfer in the already crowded Loop.

Originally Posted by aga412

They tend to only look at stupid things, but I would wholeheartedly, selfishly support something going down Pulaski (as I live right off of it that would make my life exponentially easier!).

I just really want a more northerly-bound Blue/Brown connection - is that too much to ask? Going E-W in the city would become so much easier that way. Even a Blue/Red connection further north than the loop at say, North and Clybourn would be ideal.

I may be silly, but why didn't anyone think of interconnectedness when building these things? Maybe that wasn't the idea "back in the day" but it would make flow so much better.

I wonder if Chicago had built much of these days in an age of competing private corporations that purposefully make it hard to connect. NYC's subway system was certainly built that way.


I have heard of proposals for a Brown Line extension to meet with the Blue Line (and possibly extend into and interline with the Blue Line). The Brown Line's always been a bit of an oddity as a heavy rail rapid transit system that ends up running at-grade at its further reaches. An extension as it is would mean plowing through people's homes, so I think it'd have to mean having at some the Brown Line go underground before it goes on a westward extension to the Blue Line.

[Chicago-guy]

Well. With the new Biden Trillion dollar infra plan.... there might finally be hope.

[Irishtom29]

Between Marquette Rd. and Grand Ave. the old Belt Line right of way just east of Cicero could be used. That's where Old Man Daley wanted his crosstown.