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On Monday, federal, state and local officials will join Chicago Region Environmental and Transportation Efficiency (CREATE) Program representatives at a groundbreaking ceremony for the B-8 Project to be held at the Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad Co.'s facility in Summit, Ill.

The project calls for installing a computerized signal system designed to relieve traffic congestion, enhance passenger-rail operations and improve freight-rail efficiency in Summit, Bridgeview and Bedford Park, Ill. The system will help increase the number of trains that can pass through the area.

Funded through a public/private partnership, CREATE calls for developing one passenger-rail and four freight-rail corridors to reduce train delays, relieve rail and highway congestion, shorten commuters' travel times, and improve the environment and public safety in Chicago. CREATE partners plan to build 25 roadway underpasses or overpasses to separate vehicle/pedestrian and rail traffic; six overpasses to separate freight- and passenger-rail tracks; and upgrade track, switches and signal systems.

CREATE partners include Amtrak, BNSF Railway Co., the Belt Railway Co. of Chicago, Canadian National Railway Co., Canadian Pacific Railway, Chicago Department of Transportation, CSX Transportation, Indiana Harbor Belt, Illinois DOT, Metra, Norfolk Southern Railway, Union Pacific Railroad and U.S. DOT.