Great news for the Far South Side: CTA Red Line extension takes a big step toward reality

There is good news for the South Side this week as CTA officials announced the preliminary approval of $1 billion in federal transit funds to build the long-awaited Red Line extension.

If built, the $2.3 billion project would extend the rapid transit line 5.6 miles south to 130th Street from its current terminus at 95th Street. This would help bridge one of the city’s more egregious transit inequities, finally giving the vast Far South Side a faster link to jobs and other opportunities downtown and points beyond.

The CTA announced the funding from the Federal Transportation Administration on Monday.

“While this year has brought forth a tremendous amount of uncertainty, one thing that remains certain is CTA’s unwavering commitment to advancing the Red Line Extension project,” CTA President Dorval R. Carter Jr., said in a statement.

The extension will come with new stations at 103rd, 111th, Michigan Avenue near 115th, and 130th at the Altgeld Gardens public housing development.

Additional money would be needed from the transit-minded Biden administration to complete the line.

Construction is scheduled to be completed in 2029 — three years later than planned. While we support the project, that’s news — a long new delay — that we’re sorry to hear. The CTA said Monday that the original 2026 completion date was based on “limited information,” without giving further details.

Given the need and public anticipation for this project, we encourage the CTA to come up with a construction schedule that residents and taxpayers can depend on, and stick to it.

But the extra time does provide one benefit: It allows the agency and the city’s Department of Planning Development to work even closer to develop a solid plan to bring new commercial and residential nodes around the extension’s stations. It serves no one to have the trains rattling along the vacant lots and underused retails spaces that now lie in the planned path of the Red Line extension.

The Far South Side has been losing population and amenities since 1980. If Chicago hopes to stem those losses and revitalize those neighborhoods, mass transit projects such as this one — as part of a full-on reinvestment plan — are critical. We applaud the CTA and the city for taking this significant step.

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