Project Funding Updates

New Federal Dollars Boost the I-290 Blue Line Project

The I-290 Blue Line Reconstruction Project has received over $120 million in new grant funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) so far in 2024. Here’s the breakdown:

I-290 Maywood Flood Relief Project:

IDOT received over $8.6 million from USDOT’s Promoting Resilient Operations for Transformative, Efficient, and Cost-Saving Transportation (PROTECT) grant program. The funds will be used to upgrade sewers along Harrison Street to reduce flooding on I-290 and protect local roadways and homes in the Village of Maywood from severe flooding impacts.

Blue Line – Forest Park Branch – Kedzie Avenue to Pulaski Station Track Improvements Project:

The CTA has received $111 million from USDOT’s Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhoods grant program for reconstruction of the Blue Line track from Kedzie Ave. to the Pulaski Station. The project will restore service reliability and speed, provide greater environmental resilience, and enhance the overall transit experience for historically disadvantaged communities on the west side of Chicago.

In addition, the City of Chicago is receiving a $2 million planning grant from the Reconnecting Communities program as well. This grant will advance the City of Chicago’s Reconnecting Chicago’s West Side Communities Plan, aimed at addressing the adverse impacts of I-290 on the surrounding communities. The city will partner with and learn from community members to develop the plan, which will present a vision for improved connections that reflect the needs of the neighborhoods most impacted by I-290.

Getting to a Unified Vision

While the new dollars for the project this year are significant, it is a far cry from the estimated $6.3 billion+ it will take to complete the project. That’s why a recent agreement forged between IDOT, the CTA and the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP) to create a Corridor Development Office to coordinate project engineering, funding and construction will go a long way to successfully manage this very complex project. It will also assist in creating a unified vision that business, government and labor can get behind. The Coalition applauds the agency leaders to take this innovative approach in project management.

The I-290 Blue Line Corridor Development Office will provide strategic support for:

• Long-term corridor program visioning
• Coordination and sequencing of projects and initiatives within and along the corridor
• Develop a comprehensive funding and financing plan
• Support coordination among federal partners
• Provide overall program management to track progress
• Strategic communications and messaging

Coalition Program of Work

As part of this renewed collaboration the I-290 Blue Line Coalition will continue to work with the project partners (IDOT, CTA, CMAP), elected and appointed government leaders, community-based organizations, organized labor and business associations to:

• Keep the I-290 Blue Line Reconstruction Project as the #1 priority project with regional and national significance.
• Support the I-290 Blue Line Corridor Development Office to facilitate innovative project delivery.
• Appropriate state and federal formula transportation dollars for the I-290 Blue Line Reconstruction Project.
• Support state and local agencies efforts to secure federal competitive infrastructure grants for the project.
• Seek special legislation that supports innovative programs to fund and accelerate the completion of the project.
• Regularly recognize public officials and agencies supporting the goals and objectives of the Coalition.