CTA Holding Two Public Meetings On Red Line South Branch Closing
By Chuck Sudo in News on Jun 18, 2012 8:20PM
Tonight the Chicago Transit Authority hosts the first of two public meetings regarding next year's closure of the south branch of the Red Line for repairs. It seems fitting that tonight's meeting is at the South Shore Cultural Center, which is far removed from the Red Line and best served by the Metra Electric Line and the No. 26 bus. Good luck getting there by 6 p.m. during evening rush.
Chicago Transit Board chairman Terry Peterson said in a statement:
“It’s very important to us to have a dialogue with the community about our plans to improve the Dan Ryan branch of the Red Line. We want them to know that we are doing everything in our power to make their travel as smooth as possible during the five-month project, and it’s important for us to hear their thoughts about what we can do to further aid in that process.”
Maybe the dialogue should have happened before making the announcement that the Red Line's South branch would be shut down for five months in 2013. But there is an opportunity here to take passengers' concerns about alternate commutes seriously, since what CTA has offered so far seems too reliant on shuttle buses and doesn't address using Metra as an alternative at all. (Part of that is because Metra waits until the last minute or they're caught with their pants around their ankles to do anything. But that's a story for another day.)
Concerned commuters who can't make it to the South Shore Cultural Center for tonight's meeting have a second opportunity to make their concerns known publicly 6 p.m. Thursday night at the Kennedy-King College gymnasium (6343 S. Halsted St.). Or you can email your questions to CTA at redlinesouth@transitchicago.com.
Snail mail is also available.
Red Line South Project
CTA
567 W. Lake St.
Chicago, IL, 60661