CTA gears up for $30 million track improvement along Purple Line

Later this month, the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) will kick off a $30 million track improvement project on Purple Line Express tracks between Lawrence and Jarvis stations.

Slated to begin July 20, the project calls for replacing ties, restoring track alignment and replacing areas of running rail along the aging Purple Line Express tracks, CTA officials said in a press release.

As a result of poor track conditions along the corridor, Purple Line Express trains headed to or from Chicago’s Downtown Loop currently must travel through several slow zones. This project is aimed at eliminating those slowdowns and providing more reliable service, agency officials said.

CTA expects to complete the work in November.

"Modernizing our rail lines has been a critical piece of the comprehensive investment we’re making in Chicago’s world-class transit system," Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel said in a statement.

The agency's last major renewal of these tracks took place in the early 1970s, CTA officials said.