President Joe Biden signed a bipartisan infrastructure law early in his term to fund everything from bridge improvements to new train lines. With Biden’s last few days in office here, we’re recapping some local infrastructure projects that benefitted.
Red Line Extension
Federal transit officials agreed last week to put almost $2 billion toward the project to extend the Red Line from 95th Street to 130th Street. The timing is a bit deja vu for CTA, which got federal funding for the Red and Purple Line Modernization Project before Donald Trump’s first presidential term in 2017.
The extension is expected to be finished in 2030, more than 60 years after Mayor Richard J. Daley first made the promise to South Siders.
O’Hare Modernization
The North Side airport has received tens of millions of federal dollars to improve a couple of terminals. In Terminal 3, the airport is set to update security checkpoints, revamp a baggage claim area, and renovate bathrooms. In Terminal 5, the international terminal, funds are going toward a new pedestrian bridge and improving passenger check-in.
Union Station is due for a makeover. (J. Stephen Conn / Flickr)
Amtrak Changes
Dubbed “Amtrak Joe” for his commutes between D.C. and Delaware, Biden has allocated federal funds to improve rail service across the country. In Chicago, that includes funds for developing a high-speed rail service to St. Louis and rehabbing Union Station.
Studying Expressway Harm
The U.S. Department of Transportation awarded the city $2 million last year to reconnect West Side neighborhoods displaced by Eisenhower Expressway construction in the ‘50s and ‘60s.
