Chicago's Transportation Leaders Celebrate Completion of $380 Million Rail Project
The city's transportation officials gathered to mark the completion of a major rail project in the Ashburn neighborhood. The Forest Hill Flyover, a 3-mile elevated rail corridor, has been completed with a price tag of $380 million. This public-private partnership project is part of the larger 75th Street Corridor Improvement Project at the CSX Forest Hill Railyard.
The Illinois Department of Transportation recently received over $209 million in funding to help finish the flyover project, which aims to relieve one of the country's worst bottlenecks for passenger and freight rail traffic. The project was funded through a federal grant and partnerships with various government agencies and railroads.
The Forest Hill Flyover is designed to separate freight and commuter routes, reducing daily interference between trains and improving consistency. The new structure will allow for more efficient movement of roughly 35 freight trains and 30 passenger trains.
Leaders from the transportation sector hailed the project as a major milestone, emphasizing its potential impact on efficiency, reliability, and community experience. "The completion of the Forest Hill Flyover represents far more than new infrastructure – it's a powerful step toward greater efficiency, enhanced network reliability, and an improved experience for our customers and communities," said Steve Angel, CEO of CSX.
The project involved significant construction work, including pouring over 8,300 cubic yards of concrete, installing 23.5 million pounds of steel, and building over 3,400 retaining wall pieces. Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle praised the collaboration between railroads and government agencies that made the project possible.
"This project shows what is possible through the power of partnership," Preckwinkle said. "Working together, we have tackled one of the worst rail bottlenecks in the country."
The Forest Hill Flyover is the 36th of 70 projects to be completed under the CREATE Program, a national model for modernizing infrastructure and improving mobility.
The city's transportation officials gathered to mark the completion of a major rail project in the Ashburn neighborhood. The Forest Hill Flyover, a 3-mile elevated rail corridor, has been completed with a price tag of $380 million. This public-private partnership project is part of the larger 75th Street Corridor Improvement Project at the CSX Forest Hill Railyard.
The Illinois Department of Transportation recently received over $209 million in funding to help finish the flyover project, which aims to relieve one of the country's worst bottlenecks for passenger and freight rail traffic. The project was funded through a federal grant and partnerships with various government agencies and railroads.
The Forest Hill Flyover is designed to separate freight and commuter routes, reducing daily interference between trains and improving consistency. The new structure will allow for more efficient movement of roughly 35 freight trains and 30 passenger trains.
Leaders from the transportation sector hailed the project as a major milestone, emphasizing its potential impact on efficiency, reliability, and community experience. "The completion of the Forest Hill Flyover represents far more than new infrastructure – it's a powerful step toward greater efficiency, enhanced network reliability, and an improved experience for our customers and communities," said Steve Angel, CEO of CSX.
The project involved significant construction work, including pouring over 8,300 cubic yards of concrete, installing 23.5 million pounds of steel, and building over 3,400 retaining wall pieces. Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle praised the collaboration between railroads and government agencies that made the project possible.
"This project shows what is possible through the power of partnership," Preckwinkle said. "Working together, we have tackled one of the worst rail bottlenecks in the country."
The Forest Hill Flyover is the 36th of 70 projects to be completed under the CREATE Program, a national model for modernizing infrastructure and improving mobility.
I'm so nostalgic about this project, it reminds me of when they built the elevated train in Manhattan back in the day... you know, the one that took like 45 minutes to get from point A to point B? 
Fast forward to now and we've got a new elevated rail corridor in Chicago that's supposed to relieve some of the worst traffic congestion... I hope it does, cuz I don't wanna have to deal with more crazy train schedules 
. And $380 million? That's some serious cash, almost as much as what they spent on those fancy new iPhones when I was a kid 
. Anyways, I guess it's all good now that the project is done and the trains can finally move more smoothly... one less thing to worry about, right 
?
especially with all those freight trains passing through at once! 35+ trains on one route? that's wild 
I'm kinda curious how efficient it'll be, hoping it'll reduce travel times and make life easier for commuters 
. And what's with the cost? $380 million? That's like building a whole new highway system 
.
Ah well, times change and so do our priorities!
. I mean, who doesn't love a good traffic jam, right? But seriously, it's gonna make life easier for all those trains 
. I'm talking 35 freight trains and 30 passenger trains, that's like a whole lotta train action 
️! And let's be real, the people behind this project were all about collaboration – they even had to pour over 8,300 cubic yards of concrete...talk about bonding time 
. But for real though, it's awesome that they could get so much funding from the government 
. I guess you could say this project is a real 'highway' to progress 
especially with all the events they have here, u dont wanna be stuck in traffic trying to get to the stadium or navy pier 
. and the best part is it was made possible by public-private partnership which is just genius 
like, who else is gonna fund stuff like this? CSX and the gov is def doing their part to help out 
and also can we talk about how cool is that they built over 3400 retaining wall pieces? like, those are some serious engineering skills 
. I'm not surprised it took some collaboration between railroads and government agencies to make it happen tho, we've gotta work together if we wanna tackle big problems like this. Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle's right on the money with that partnership thing, it's all about gettin' people and organizations on the same page 
and it's awesome that they got so many ppl on board 2 work on this project (pun intended) 
just kidding but seriously can we afford this kinda thing these days? at least it's gonna make the daily commute less congested for those stuck in chicago 
$380 million might seem like a lot, but think about how many people it's gonna benefit - commuters, freight trains, the whole city! 