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CTA construction report: Canal traction power online; Austin ASAP groundbreaking underway; RPM phase milestones
Summary
Chief Infrastructure Officer Bill Mooney reported progress on Canal traction power, the Harlem Bus Bridge deck pour, Austin ASAP groundbreaking and ongoing RPM station work, and said several ASAP and RPM stations are in construction or design.
CTA Chief Infrastructure Officer Bill Mooney told the board on May 14 that several capital projects are advancing, including commissioning work at the new Canal traction power facility, continued construction on the Austin All Stations Accessibility Program (ASAP) station, track and station milestones on the Red-Purple Modernization (RPM) project and a major deck pour for a bus bridge on Harlem Avenue.
Key project updates: - Canal traction power facility: Bill Mooney said Canal is fully online for beneficial use and is providing regenerative braking benefits to both the Green and Blue lines. Mooney described the installation, wiring and multi-month commissioning required for traction power equipment.
- All Stations Accessibility Program (ASAP): Austin (Green Line) moved from pre-construction to active construction after a May groundbreaking; design work continues at several other ASAP stations (including Montrose, Belmont, Irving Park) and 16 elevator-rehab projects are in design. CTA identified property needs for California (Blue Line), and staff is finalizing acquisitions and procurement to advance platform work.
- Harlem Bus Bridge (Harlem Avenue): crews completed a large, single-day deck pour and are following with finishing work, approach construction and canopy/utility tie-ins.
- Red-Purple Modernization (RPM) and Clark Junction: RPM reached a milestone by opening Park Junction on May 4, restoring a key segment of track operations after reconfiguration; Bryn Mawr is reported about 90% complete, and Argyle and other stations are progressing with platform finishes, architectural features and signage.
- Refresh and Renew/Customer-facing work: the program completed station refreshes timed for the baseball season and is working at a series of stations and bus turnarounds; CTA said it is also moving to expand community-facing improvements around station footprints.
Why it matters: staff said progress on traction power and station work will support reliability, regenerative energy capture and ADA accessibility upgrades. RPM junction work is a multi-year, technically complex project that CTA staff and operations credited as a major milestone.
What board members asked and staff promised: board members asked for broader, regular updates that tie construction work to rider outcomes (for example, how substation work improves service) and requested more reporting on transit-oriented development and non-infrastructure place-making tied to CTA properties; staff agreed to add or quarterly highlight slides for that material.
Ending: CTA’s diversity and workforce staff reported DBE and workforce outcomes for RPM through March (22 unique DBEs awarded $299M+, DBE payments $233M+, workforce hours >2.3M) and said outreach and apprenticeship events continue across the city.
