CTA Red Line Extension Program Management

HNTB provides program management services for the Chicago Transit Authority’s Red Line Extension (RLE) project — a proposed 5.6-mile heavy rail rapid transit exten­sion of the Red Line on Chicago’s Far South Side. The equity-focused project will include four new stations that feature bus connections and parking facilities and provide a modern, efficient car storage yard and shop facility. RLE is one part of CTA’s Red Ahead Program to extend and enhance the entire Red Line.

Program Management

HNTB set up the RLE PMC team structure and established the federal New Starts strategy, preliminary engineering, NEPA and program controls. Select tasks include extension of staff services, program and project controls, long-term cash flow, Quality Management Plan, project delivery methods, financial reporting, operations planning, New Starts strategy, and over­sight of future phases, including engineering and construction.

Preliminary Engineering Oversight

As PMC, HNTB oversees the Preliminary Engineering (PE) process and PE consultant (PEC) directly, including verification that the work through 30% design level meets a professional standard, complies with FTA and CTA policies and standards and is within the mutually agreed upon schedule and budget. The PMC delivers for CTA by identifying obstacles, conflicts, and risks, and verifying that plans are advanced to resolve said issues.

Technical Papers and Reports

In the PMC role, HNTB has prepared numerous technical memo­randa and other policy and strategy documents to guide the successful implementation of RLE. These include bus service planning/analysis, rail service alternatives, ridership forecasting methodology and STOPS model calibration results, cost modeling, analysis of project delivery methods, Project Management Plan (PMP), Risk and Contingency Management Plan, and related Management Capacity Plans.

New Starts Grant

As program manager, HNTB helped CTA secure a $1.97 billion grant from the FTA’s New Starts program under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The funding, covering half the cost of the long-awaited project, enables the project to advance through the final engineering phase with construction to follow.

The grant stands as the largest amount the CTA has ever received and will help make the RLE Project a reality for hundreds of thousands of low income, minority residents on Chicago’s Far South Side.

Rendering Courtesy of M2