Chicago Metra Line Upgrades On Track

Extensions and improvements on three different commuter lines total $558 million in construction
May 2003

by Craig Barner

After six years of planning, upgrades have begun on three different commuter rail lines run by Metra in the Chicago area.

The projects, which will last through late 2005 or early 2006, are projected to cost $558 million.
The federal government is picking up the largest share of the cost, and state and local sources have also provided funding.

The lines comprise the 33-mile SouthWest Service route to Orland Park, the 36-mile Union Pacific West route to Geneva and the 52-mile North Central Service to Antioch. Each line terminates in downtown Chicago. The heavily used UPW route provided more than seven million passenger trips in 2001, and the other two lines had between one million and two million trips each the same year.

Accommodating population increases and decreasing operational bottlenecks are driving the projects, said Audrey Renteria, media relations specialist with Chicago-based Metra.

The projects will allow service to double in some cases.

The NCS line will grow from 10 to 22 weekday trains, and the SWS route will expand from 16 to 30 weekday trains, she said. The UPW system will not grow beyond the current 59 weekday trains, but a time-consuming and costly train move on the line in the morning from the present West Chicago yard will be eliminated.

Weekday boardings are also projected to more than double on the SWS and NCS lines - 6,843 rides in 1999 vs. 18,500 rides in 2008 for the SWS and 4,500 rides in 1999 vs. 12,200 rides in 2008 for the NCS.

Tracking the Projects

Project elements include added track and new signals, stations, parking and rail yards.

Three miles of second track will be added to the SWS route, and about 13 miles of second track will be added to the NCS line. Slightly less than 6 miles of third track will be laid on the UPW system.

The added track will improve traffic flow especially on lines shared with freight trains, said Sid Talsma, project manager for Park Ridge, Ill.-based Ragnar Benson Inc., a joint venture partner in the general contracting team on the UPW line.

"If you currently have a 1-mile or longer freight train coming into Chicago, the train parks itself on the mainline," he said. "By bringing a third line in, it's actually allowing a passing track."

New track will also allow Metra to offer express service or runs with reduced stops, said Jamie Rich, project manager for Elgin, Ill.-based IHC Construction Cos., general contractor on the NCS line. Only a single track covers the existing NCS route.

The UPW project will extend service 9 miles to Elburn while SWS will expand 12 miles to Manhattan.

The type of work varies by line.

Because the SWS extension covers existing Norfolk Southern track, new rail will not be put down, said David Hengesh, project manager for Chicago-based F.H. Paschen/FN Nielsen, general contractor on the SWS route.

More than 15 bridges and culverts between Orland Park and Manhattan will be upgraded to handle commuter trains, he said. Some of these structures will be demolished and rebuilt, and others will only be repaired.

"They [the bridges and culverts] are sturdy enough to handle a train, but there are different regulations for freight traffic vs. commuter traffic," Hengesh said. "The Federal Railway Administration says you can run freight over one thing, but when you run people over it, the structure is a little more critical."

The footings and piers of some of these structures will be replaced, and a few steel spans will be restored. A large number of precast box culverts, ranging between 6 and 10 ft. long, are to be erected, too.

"The ones we're completely replacing are mostly crossing streams and rivers," Hegesh added.

Most of the trackwork elements - the setting of ties, ballast and rails - will be done by entities other than the general contractors or their subcontractors.

The Union Pacific Railroad, which owns the line the UPW service covers, will do the trackwork, Talsma said.

Metra itself is doing the trackwork on the SWS route, Renteria said. "In any general improvement project, our track crews are out there on a regular basis maintaining our service," she added.
Continuous-welded rail, which offers a smoother ride and requires less maintenance than conventional systems, will be installed.

Ragnar Benson will do the trackwork elements in a yard to be built in Elburn that will service the UPW route, Talsma said. This will include 4 miles of track, 14 turnouts, 36,000 tons of ballast and 30,000 tons of sub-ballast.

A yard is also planned for the SWS line in Manhattan, which includes buildings for crews and the storage of cars and locomotives.

New stations will be built in towns, such as La Fox and Elburn on the UPW line, to receive service for the first time. Some stations, such as Chicago Ridge on the SWS line, will be demolished and rebuilt, and some station platforms will be expanded to accommodate the increased number of passengers.

Civil Work Involved

A substantial amount of civil work makes up each project.

Earth will be moved to create embankments on the SWS line. Train and passenger bridges will be built or repaired on the NCS route.

Other civil work includes the construction of sewers, ditches, retention ponds and wind breaks.

"We have six or seven instances in which we're boring and jacking pipe under the mainline structure," Ragnar Benson's Talsma said. "We go as large as 78-in.-diameter pipe, which is darn close to tunneling."

Ensuring safety is a major concern, he said. Laborers, for instance, are to be trained that work ceases as a train approaches if activity occurs within 25 ft. of a track.

Coordination was cited by all as the top concern as work shifts into high gear in the coming months. The schedule on the SWS route, for instance, is to accommodate both commuter and freight traffic.

"Commuter traffic north of 179th Street runs during the morning and afternoon, so we have only a window during the day for work," Hengesh said. "South of 179th Street, there are only a few freight runs a week. We'll have three- to four-day stretches where we can replace an entire structure."

Another Metra Project

Bridge repairs are planned on Metra's Rock Island District line, which runs between Chicago and Joliet. The project, which has not started, is expected to run through early 2005, said Aaron Tubbs, project manager for Chicago-based Walsh Construction Co., the general contractor.

The project includes the demolition and rebuilding of the steel spans, he said. Walsh's contract is $87 million.

A Suburban Line?

In January, Metra unveiled plans for the 55-mile Star line, a suburb-to-suburb route that would provide service between O'Hare International Airport and Joliet. Other suburban proposals are also being considered, Metra's Renteria said.