Chicago Politics

Create Columbus Project 7.16.25

Description

Mayor Brandon Johnson attends the Create Columbus Project.

Transcript

0:01 Thank you.

0:33 Good morning, everyone. I'm Erin Alamon. I'm executive director of the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning, otherwise known as CMAP. It is my privilege to welcome you here today for the groundbreaking of the Columbus Avenue and Belt Railway Company of Chicago grade separation project known within the create program as gs11 thanks for being here in the ashburn community at columbus and maplewood as we mark the beginning of an important transportation

1:08 and public safety investment before we begin i want to recognize that there are so many partners here today represented that are part of this project from our federal our state our county our city officials, the Illinois Department of Transportation, Cook County, the Chicago Department of Transportation, the Belt Railway Company of Chicago, all of our railroad partners, our passenger and freight rail partners, organized labor, the engineering and construction firms that

1:40 have worked on this project, community leaders, and the residents and businesses of the Ashburn community projects like this do not happen because of one agency or one funding source or one moment of leadership they happen because institutions remain committed to shared objectives over many years this is the foundation of the create program Chicago has served as a national rail hub for nearly a century century and a half that is today the Chicago region remains the

2:15 most important rail chain interchange in North America. Freight moving through this region supports businesses, workers, consumers, and communities throughout the country. But Chicago's role as a national transportation center also creates local consequences. Those consequences are visible at crossings like this one. Every day, approximately 11,500 vehicles travel through this location while about 32 freight trains use the three belt railway tracks crossing columbus avenue

2:46 and those movements can cause delay congestion idling and conflicts among trains vehicles and pedestrians and emergency responders this crossing has been designated a critical 9-1-1 crossing and that designation means that a stopped train or a passing train can delay police officers firefighters, ambulances, and other first responders when minutes matter most. GS-11 addresses that problem directly. When this project is complete, Columbus Avenue will pass beneath the three belt railway tracks.

3:21 Trains will be able to continue moving through the rail network while motorists, pedestrians, and emergency vehicles will travel safely below them. This project is expected to eliminate delays of thousands of vehicles each day and save motorists more than 36,000 hours of delay each year. By reducing the time vehicles defend waiting and idling, the project will also help reduce harmful emissions in the surrounding community. Those numbers are significant, but they only tell part of the story.

3:53 For a parent trying to get a kid to school, this project means a more dependable trip. For a worker trying to get to their job, it means fewer unpredictable delays. And for a local business, it means more reliable access for customers, employees, and deliveries. And this is what good regional infrastructure does. It should strengthen the broader transportation system while producing clear, practical benefits for the people who live nearby. GS11 also illustrates why the CREATE program remains nationally significant.

4:26 create a first-of-a-kind public partnership involving the U.S. Department of Transportation, the state of Illinois, Cook County, City of Chicago, Metro, Amtrak, and the nation's freight railroads. Together, these partners are advancing a coordinated program that helps improve the Chicago region terminal. The objective is straightforward. Reduce transportation conflicts, improve safety, strengthen passenger and freight mobility, and make the national supply chain more reliable.

4:57 This project is supported by state, local, and railroad. investment including nearly 50 million dollars through idot's competitive freight program the funding reflects an important reality that although this project is located here in ashburn its benefits extend beyond this intersection it supports both local community members organizations and a rail network that moves goods across our country so today's groundbreaking Everything represents years of planning, coordination, design, public engagement, and persistence.

5:29 It's also a reminder that large infrastructure programs are ultimately delivered one project and one community at a time. So on behalf of CMAP, I want to thank every organization and individual who played a role in bringing GS11 to this point. I especially want to acknowledge the Ashburn community for its patience, its participation, and continued engagement as this move this work moves forward today we celebrate the beginning of construction in the months ahead the real measures

6:00 of success will be a safer crossing more reliable emergency access reduced delays and a stronger transportation network thank you for being here and for supporting this important investment in the ashburn community the chicago region and our nation's transportation system. It's now my pleasure to introduce our next speaker, Department of Transportation Commissioner William Cheeks, Jr.

6:38 Good morning. Thank you, Erin, and thank you all for being here. I'm William Cheeks, Commissioner of the Chicago Department of Transportation. CDOT is proud to be a founding partner in the CREATE program and proud to serve as the lead agency delivering this important infrastructure investment, The Columbus Avenue and Belt Railway Company of Chicago Grade Separation Project. I've learned that with the CREATE program, every project gets a nickname.

7:11 This one is GS11, so you will probably hear that quite a bit. It's easier than saying Chicago Railway Belt Grade Separation Project, so GS11. It may sound like a code name, but it represents a major investment on Chicago's southwest side. So what exactly are we building? Today, Columbus Avenue crosses three BRC tracks and street level. Trains, trucks, commuters, and emergency vehicles are all traveling over the same crossing. Over 11,000 vehicles and 32 freight trains

7:44 pass through this crossing each day, creating congestion, delays, and potential safety concerns. This project eliminates those conflict points. We're lowering Columbus Avenue to create a new underpass for vehicles beneath the BRC tracks, reducing roadway congestion, travel delays, and improving safety at this location. This will also improve truck access to Norfolk Southern's Lander's Yard. That means there will be fewer trucks backing up on Western Avenue, less congestion, and safer travel through the area. Notably, this will be

8:19 especially impactful for students attending St. Rita's High School right next door behind today's groundbreaking our years of planning design engineering and coordination projects of this size and complexity don't happen overnight and i want to thank everyone who helped get us to this milestone i also want to thank our prime contractor icc group and the skilled trades people who are delivering this project none of this is possible without partnership This project reflects what CREATE does best, bringing together federal, state, local, and railroad partners

8:55 around the shared goal of a safer, more efficient rail and roadway network. I want to extend a special thank you to our partners at IDOT. Through the Illinois Competitive Freight Program, IDOT provided about $50 million for this project, in addition to other state and federal funding. That investment is what turns years of planning and partnership into construction, and we're grateful for the state's continued commitment to the CREATE program and to improving transportation across our region.

9:27 So thank you to IDOT, Cook County, the Association of American Railroads, Norfolk Southern and the Belt Railway Company of Chicago. Thank you to Alderman Curtis and Alderman Moore for your partnership and advocacy, and to the Ashburn community for your patience as we deliver a project that will make this crossing safer for generations to come. Now it is my pleasure to turn things over to Alderman Curtis. Thank you.

10:04 It's a beautiful day in this neighborhood. A beautiful day in this neighborhood. Would you be mine? The mayor wouldn't let me finish singing at City Council, so I have to finish up to date. Good morning. Welcome to Ask My Community. I am so excited about this project. It's been a long time coming. Hey, no more horn blowing, no more stopping, backing up traffic.

10:34 but I want to thank our partners especially because I don't want you to get comfortable because I'm going to go and beg for more money next year because we need one more. We have a huge, we have 18, the Ashburn community have three large intermodal intermodals And we definitely need safety coming across the railroad tracks and all of our crossings.

11:07 I know the community has been really excited. We started this community initiative with the natives about four or five years ago. And again, it's been great and a long time coming. I'm so excited about what we're doing here. Thank you so much for coming out. I want to thank the mayor and IDOT and our CMAP team, IDOT, CDOT, all the dots.

11:38 I appreciate everyone here today because Ashburn is definitely excited. So thank you so much for coming out today. I appreciate you. Thank you. I'm so excited I forgot to introduce our friend and partner, Jerry Pat. I don't know if I can be that excited or not, but you guys are lucky to have the alderman there.

12:17 So, first of all, I'd like to thank the creative partners, our government partners, community leaders, safety advocates, and everyone whose hard work has brought us to this moment. Your leadership, dedication, and commitment to public safety are creating lasting benefits that will be felt for generations. The GS-11 project is about more than infrastructure, it's about people, it's about partnerships,

12:48 and most importantly it's about safety of the railroad and the community. Around 11,500 vehicles travel through this crossing daily. Once complete, GS-11 will eliminate delays to nearly 1,700 of those. More importantly, this project will eliminate the possibility of impacts between trains, vehicles, pedestrians. Since the 1970s, when records started being kept for this crossing, the FRA reported there were 36 impacts with trains at this particular crossing.

13:28 At the heart of this project is a commitment to rail safety. This commitment is shared by Operation Lightsaber. I received a statement from Asha Jackson from the Operation Lifesaver. Eliminating at-grade crossings drastically reduces the risk of train impacts and improves emergency vehicle access. Belt Railway of Chicago's upcoming grade separation project is an important step toward eliminating impact incidents and saving lives.

14:01 As we celebrate today's achievement, we should also recognize the partnerships that made it possible. Projects like GS-11 require vision, persistence, and collaboration among public agencies, railroads, elected officials, and community stakeholders. Together we are reducing congestion. together we are strengthening the community and together we are making our transportation network

14:32 safer for generations to come thank you very much and about this time i'd like to introduce mr osborne from the illinois department how's everybody doing great staying cool trying well thank you so much uh my name is jason osborne and I am the director of the Office of Intermodal Project Implementation.

15:04 So as I tell people, that's pretty much everything, not highways, that I've had. So I'm really happy to be here. Secretary Biagi, she's disappointed that she couldn't be here today. She loves to support CREAT, and we love, as staff, that she supports CREAT. So I know she's really disappointed that she couldn't be here. But I want to thank Valisha and Joanne for being here. Thank you so much. But know the Secretary supports this program, and we've worked really hard to get to this point.

15:34 And I know we're breaking ground, right? But you see the construction in the background, so it's kind of like breaking ground yet again. But these ceremonies are important. And as the other speaker says, about 11,500 vehicles go through here. That's the, on average, right? But what does that mean? And as I highlighted it too, thousands of people in this neighborhood are surprised, may not surprise, but have to deal with the freight trains blocking their way to just do the daily life. This is one of those things that you can call a game changer, and that makes us feel very proud.

16:06 I love the fact that the CREATE program, just like this, continues to produce projects, and we're doing very good. I think we're over half, and we're working our way on the bottom half of the list of 70 projects, so that's great news. I'm happy to see so many of our CREATE partners here, as well as members of the Ashburn neighborhood. This is a really great event. I want to thank you Mayor Johnson, President Frank Winkle and Commissioner Cheeks for their support on all this and Mr. Peck and CMAP, Aaron thank you so

16:37 much too and and of course I got to thank our Governor Pritzker for continuing to support transportation funding in particular freight rail funding in the CRE program. The department we truly are proud that we were able to award almost 50 million dollars to this project we really are so thank you. I now have the distinct pleasure of welcoming the mayor of the one of the greatest cities on earth to the podium. Thank you so much.

17:16 Good morning everyone. And just want to make sure that we insert in the record the greatest freaking city in the world, Chicago. Not just one of them, right? The greatest freak. I got one witness over here. Thank you. Really honored to join you all today and break ground on the GS-11 project, a critical infrastructure upgrade that will keep the South Side safe and on the move. I do want to acknowledge and thank our CREATE Program partners and the Ashburn community for their collective leadership on this project.

17:51 And that includes, again, Alderman Curtis. I know Alderman David Moore is not able to be here, but I do see a representative from his office thank you to the representatives the young people that I hear from Representative Crawford's office as well to our Deputy Mayor Lori Lipson who is almost literally everywhere in our city every time I look up I'm at an event and there's Lori Lipson so thank you to CDOT thank you to Commissioner Cheeks, IDOT, Cook County Department of Transportation, Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning and the Beltway

18:24 sorry, the Belt Railway Company of Chicago, and with that in mind, let's give it up for all of the workers who are fulfilling this promise for the African community. Thank you all. Because, you know, Chicago was a proud union town. It's a pro-worker city, and it's also a proud leading freight rail hub in our nation. In many ways, all railways lead to Chicago. More freight,

18:57 moves through this region than anywhere else in the entire country. Our strength as a trading hub empower our economy and our communities. Now, as Alderman Curtis alluded to, this strength comes at a cost because every Chicagoan knows the pain of getting stuck behind a freight train. You start looking for exits from any corner of the earth. But for the families and businesses who live and work near these tracks, it's more than an inconvenience. Long delays affect daily life making it harder

19:31 to get where they need to go. That's why projects like this matter so much. I'm grateful to the CREATE Program partners who continue to modernize train passes throughout the region so that we can keep the trade and people moving. I do want to recognize again CDOT and all our project partners for the work that has brought us to this incredible milestone. Together we are eliminating the at-grade crossing here and constructing roadway underpass beneath the belt railway tracks. Once completed, this project will

20:05 eliminate delays for nearly 1,700 vehicles each day, reduce more than 36,000 annual hours of motorist delays. Furthermore, the traffic improvement work on Columbus Avenue, complementing the underpass work, will improve access to the surrounding industrial corridors and reduce congestion on Western Avenue and Lord knows we certainly need to do that. This project is important for police and firefighters and paramedics moving

20:36 through this corridor because every second certainly counts in our city. This is also especially meaningful for the students and teachers and families at nearby St. Rita High School who will benefit from a safer and a more reliable connection through this corridor. Today is about making our community safer and more efficient. I'm committed to building a city government that is more collaborative and more responsive to the needs of all of Chicago. This project reflects that commitment, where every level of government and our partners are coming together to solve problems that communities have

21:09 lived with for far too long. I do want to again thank our Create Program partners. This project is just one of many investments still to come across the Chicago region. I also want to applaud creates commitment to investing in the next generation through partnerships with schools like ruggles elementary and others shout out to ruggles yes i don't know if y'all happy because i shouted you out or that it's summertime and you don't have kids in front of you either way thank you for this partnership because it's the next generation that will benefit and other neighborhoods

21:43 that are near create projects and finally the program is expanding learning opportunities and it's introducing students to careers in transportation, engineering, and, of course, the skilled trades. And that's the kind of leadership and partnership that will keep Chicago moving for generations to come. So I look forward to seeing this project completed and serving our Southside community. Even for a Westsider, just know that I love the Southside of Chicago. God bless you all, and God bless this great city, City of Chicago.

22:13 And with that, we'll turn it back over to Erin. Thank you all. Thank you for that. That concludes our program, and I'll ask that the speakers join us behind us for the groundbreaking ceremony.

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