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Secretary LaHood Tours CREATE
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Congressman Dan Lipinski hosted U.S. DOT
Secretary Ray LaHood on a rail tour of
CREATE projects in August. Riding a
Metra train, Secretary LaHood toured
CREATE projects on the Beltway Corridor
and viewed several proposed highway-rail
grade separation projects. In the photo
are: Secretary Ray LaHood, U.S.
Representative Dan Lipinski, and
Illinois DOT Secretary Gary Hannig.
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Illinois Funds CREATE in Capital Bill
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Governor Patrick Quinn and the Illinois
General Assembly approved $300 million
for CREATE in its recent Capital Bill.
Additionally, two CREATE projects (130th
and Torrence and the Roosevelt Road
grade separations) received individual
funding in the bill. Thank you to our
legislative champions, Rep. Elaine
Nekritz and Sen. Martin Sandoval, for
their unwavering support for CREATE. And
thank you to all the businesses,
organizations, and individuals who
helped support CREATE in this package.
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CREATE Completes Two Projects
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The Melrose Connection (CREATE Project
B3) is the largest CREATE project
completed to date and was finished in
September. This is the first CREATE
project that includes all of the major
construction components for a new
railway segment: grading, new track, new
signals, and a new bridge. The new
infrastructure adds a second connection
between the Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad
(IHB) and Union Pacific's Proviso Yard.
Prior to the completion of this
project, trains departing Proviso Yard
would block the IHB main lines,
preventing other trains from moving
through the area. The new connection
allows trains to maintain active
operation on the IHB at the same time
trains are entering and departing
Proviso Yard, which greatly increases
capacity. See
Melrose Connection
for photos.
CREATE Project B8, which upgraded the 40
year-old signal system along the Indiana
Harbor Belt (IHB) Corridor from Bedford
Park to Summit, Illinois, was completed
in the spring. Each weekday,
six Metra Heritage Corridor trains
serving a total of nearly 3,000
passengers daily and 10 Amtrak trains
serving a total of 1,500 passengers
daily operate on tracks crossing the
IHB. Prior to the $4.5 million project,
passenger trains often experienced
delays due to slow moving freight trains
that could not clear the intersection of
two rail lines, resulting from the
antiquated signal system. The B8
project's upgraded signalization has
significantly reduced cross traffic
interference and reduced passenger
delays. Visit
B8 Photo
for an image of the completed project.
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CREATE Applies for Stimulus Funding
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The Illinois Department of
Transportation filed an application for
the federal Transportation Generating
Economic Recovery (TIGER) Discretionary
Grant Program of the American Recovery
and Reinvestment Act. The application
requests $300 million for 16 CREATE
projects targeted for completion by
February 2012. The application also
outlines a 39% funding match. The
economic benefits of these 16 projects
will be tremendous, including the
creation of nearly 5,000 job years.
Illinois DOT estimates that these CREATE
projects will generate $256 million in
national logistics cost savings per
year. In addition, seven CREATE projects
were also submitted for ARRA High Speed
Rail funding. More information on the
TIGER application can be found at
CREATE TIGER Application.
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City of Chicago Welcomes Jeffrey Sriver
as CREATE Program Director
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On October 1st Jeffrey Sriver joined the
Chicago Department of Transportation as
CREATE Program Director. Jeff brings 17
years of experience in transportation
planning, policy, operations analysis,
and project management for the planning
and development of major capital
investments. He was most recently a
Senior Transportation Consultant in the
Chicago office of Arup, a global
engineering and planning consultancy.
From 2000 through 2007 Jeff worked for
the Chicago Transit Authority, most
recently as General Manager of Strategic
Planning in which capacity was
responsible for long range service
planning and analysis, rail system
expansion planning, fleet planning,
ridership forecasting, fare policy
analysis, and market research. His
earlier responsibilities at CTA included
General Manager of Construction and
Manager of Resource Planning. Prior to
joining CTA, Jeff managed projects
related to public transit development in
Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and
South America for a Japan-based
international development consulting
firm. Jeff has a Bachelors Degree in
Civil Engineering from Purdue University
and a Masters in Transportation from the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Jeff can be reached at
jeffrey.sriver@cityofchicago.org.
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CREATE Breaks Ground in Blue Island
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On October 5, CREATE held a
groundbreaking for Project B12 to add a
third main line of track, update
signals, and conduct bridge work in Blue
Island and Alsip. This $26 million
project will employ 80 rail employees
and 100 contractors.
Participants in the groundbreaking shown
in the photo above include: Jeff White,
CSX; Joseph P. Clary, IDOT; Stanley
Watkins, Office of Congressman Bobby
Rush; Bill Thompson, Association of
American Railroads; State Representative
Monique Davis, 27th District; Mayor
Patrick Kitching, Alsip; and Mayor Don
Peloquin, Blue Island.
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CREATE Project Among 10 Best of 2008
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Midwest Construction named the CREATE
rail-highway grade separation project at
Grand Avenue in Franklin Park, Illinois
one
of the ten best projects in 2008. See
Engineering News-Record - Best of 2008.
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National
and Local Organizations Support CREATE
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CREATE has broad support including
communities
receiving passenger rail benefits,
national businesses and civic and
municipal organizations. Visit (CREATE
Benefits)
to view these letters.
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Did You Know?
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A single intermodal train carries the
load of 280 trucks. For more information
see: Freight
Rail Works.
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