Blue Line renovations work their way to Forest Park 

The Chicago Transit Authority is rolling out the next phase of construction on the Blue Line’s Forest Park branch. Late last month, the CTA awarded a $17 million contract to redesign 13 miles of the Blue Line from the Illinois Medical District station to Forest Park. Awarded to AECOM Technical Services, the contract is to update 70,000 feet of track between the IMD station and I-290 Bridge just east of the Forest Park station. AECOM’s services will include a field investigation of the track to see where infrastructure improvements, including drainage along I-290, need to be made. Design work is expected to begin this year. A timeline for construction is not yet available. Most of the $17 million project is funded by a $15.8 million Federal Highway Administration grant. The multi-year Forest Park Branch Rebuild Project will create infrastructure that is 100% accessible and also allows for faster, more reliable trains through updated track, signal, power and drainage inf