The Chicago Transit Authority is rolling out the next phase of construction on the Blue Line’s Forest Park branch.
Late last month, the CTA awarded a $17 million contract to redesign 13 miles of the Blue Line from the Illinois Medical District station to Forest Park. Awarded to AECOM Technical Services, the contract is to update 70,000 feet of track between the IMD station and I-290 Bridge just east of the Forest Park station.
AECOM’s services will include a field investigation of the track to see where infrastructure improvements, including drainage along I-290, need to be made. Design work is expected to begin this year. A timeline for construction is not yet available.
Most of the $17 million project is funded by a $15.8 million Federal Highway Administration grant.
The multi-year Forest Park Branch Rebuild Project will create infrastructure that is 100% accessible and also allows for faster, more reliable trains through updated track, signal, power and drainage infrastructure. Currently, over 80% of the Forest Park branch of the Blue Line is a CTA “slow zone,” where trains are required to travel slower for safety.
In 2023, the first phase of construction on the Blue Line Forest Park branch was completed from the LaSalle station downtown to the Illinois Medical District station. Not a part of the most recent contract, design work has been completed for track between Kedzie Avenue and Keeler Avenue. Construction will start on that stretch next year.
The Forest Park Branch Rebuild Project is part of the Connect 290 Blue Program established by the CTA, Illinois Department of Transportation and Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning. The 2024 program coordinates funding to rebuild parts of I-290 and the Blue Line’s Forest Park branch — much of which is original infrastructure from 1958.
“Rebuilding the Forest Park branch isn’t just about upgrading tracks. It’s about providing faster, more reliable and accessible service for the people who depend on the Blue Line every day,” said Erin Aleman, executive director of CMAP, in a statement.
“The I-290 and Blue Line corridor is among the priority investments the region identified in its recently adopted 2026 Regional Transportation Plan,” Aleman added. “This design milestone is an important step toward realizing that vision and reflects the sustained collaboration among CTA, IDOT, and CMAP needed to deliver meaningful improvements for northeastern Illinois.”
