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3/24/2026
The Chicago Transit Authority on March 20 sued the Trump administration, seeking the release of $2.1 billion in federal funding obligated to the CTA for its Red Line extension (RLE) and Red and Purple modernization (RPM) projects.
In its federal court filing in the Northern District of Illinois, the CTA alleges that the U.S. Department of Transportation and Federal Transit Administration are not adhering to their own statutory and regulatory requirements about funding suspensions. Additionally, the CTA accuses the Trump administration of singling out Democrat-run programs, Politico reported.
"The prolonged pause threatens continued progress on RLE and RPM. If funding is not promptly restored, CTA will be forced to stop work on both projects," CTA officials said in a press release.
The White House Office of Management and Budget froze the projects' funding on Oct. 3, 2025, during the federal government shutdown. The same day, the USDOT informed the CTA that the two projects were under review to ensure "nondiscrimination in [USDOT's] financial assistance program," CTA officials said in the authority's filing.
CTA complied with the USDOT and the Federal Transit Administration's requests for information on the projects' compliance with the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise program, but has not received any communication from USDOT concerning the projects' funding since Dec. 10, 2025, said CTA officials in a press release.
The modernization project is near completion, but the RLE project is ongoing. Once completed, the RLE project will extend CTA transit-rail service 5.3 miles south from 95th Street to 130th Street on Chicago's far south side, according to the CTA.
The CTA is one of two transit agencies to have federal funding put on hold in October 2025. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority has also sued the Trump administration over the paused funding, winning its first case regarding funds for the Hudson River Tunnel project. The MTA earlier this month sued the Trump administration over funding for the Second Avenue Subway project in New York City.