CTA lets public rail against Red Line subsidy

The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) has announced a public meeting at which Chicagoans can weigh in on a proposed rail subsidy.

Rail construction zone
Drawing of CTA's proposed Red Line construction.

In the first phase of what the CTA calls its Red and Purple Modernization project, the agency will spend an estimated $2 billion for North Side construction. It'll build new tracks, bridges, viaducts, and station facilities on the Red and Purple Lines from Division St. to Devon Ave.

The project will also, according to the agency, "require the acquisition and demolition of certain properties along that right-of-way."

The CTA wants local property taxes to fund half of the estimated tab—using a special tax-increment financing (TIF) district.

The transit agency has invited the public to comment on the proposed rail improvements and TIF district on Sept. 13, 2016 at Sullivan Athletic Center, 2323 N. Sheffield Ave., starting at 6 p.m.