Have you taken the train at, or driven by, the Austin Green Line station and wondered what the construction entails?
$25 million of renovations are underway at the CTA Green Line stop at Austin Boulevard and Corcoran Place to make the station fully accessible. These include a new elevator, escalator and ADA-compliant ramp, plus reconstructed stairs and an extended platform.
The CTA closed the main entrance of the station in June with work expected to be completed by early next year. Riders still have access to the station through an auxiliary entrance.
“Accessibility is not a luxury, nor is it optional; it is a fundamental right,” Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson said at the groundbreaking for the station renovations earlier this year. “I am proud that, when completed, this project will transform daily life for residents with disabilities who rely on public transit.”
The Austin Green Line station opened in 1899, was rebuilt in 1962, and hasn’t been updated since.
The Austin station renovations are a part of the CTA’s All Stations Accessibility Program, launched in 2018 to make all CTA stations fully accessible by 2038. Austin is one of 14 stations currently being renovated, growing the 70% of 146 CTA stops that are ADA-accessible.
“The start of this project work is the first major milestone in the year ahead for CTA’s All Stations Accessibility Program, which will include the opening of six newly accessible rail stations across the City – and demonstrates our commitment to making public transit work for everyone,” CTA Acting President Nora Leerhsen said in a statement.
“No matter their zip code, all Chicagoans deserve reliable and accessible public transit to get to school, get to work and more easily move throughout Chicagoland,” U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth said in a statement. She helped secure federal funding for the Austin Green Line station. “I’ll keep working with our local leaders and the Illinois congressional delegation to make public transportation more efficient, safe and accessible for all of Chicago.”
Over $20 million of the funding for the Austin Green Line station came from the federal Surface Transportation Program, and over $5 million came from Gov. JB Pritzker’s Rebuild Illinois Capital Plan.
The CTA already has funding for the 14 stations in the first phase of the All Stations Accessibility Program, plus half the financing for its second phase. Second phase stations will include the Cicero, Pulaski and Austin Blue Line stops on Chicago’s West Side, plus the Oak Park and Ridgeland Green Line stations in the western suburbs.
According to a CTA statement, “Funding remains the biggest impediment to achieving a fully accessible rail system. Since the launch of the ASAP Plan, CTA has secured $740.8 million in funding,” but is still seeking finances for phases three and four.
