News Story

Chicago Transit Board approves contract to design and build the RLE, including four, fully accessible Red Line stations on the Far South Side; project groundbreaking expected late 2025

The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) has taken the next major step in the transformational RedLine Extension (RLE) Project by selecting an experienced contracting team, Walsh-VINCI Transit Community Partners, to design and build the 5.6-mile extension of the Red Line from 95th Street to 130th Street, including four new Red Line stations.

The Chicago Transit Board today approved the award of a $2.9 billion contract to Walsh-VINCI Transit Community Partners following a comprehensive, two-year procurement process.

RLE is the largest project in CTA history and will provide faster connections from the Far South Side to the rest of the city while serving as an economic catalyst to one of the most disinvested parts of Chicago. The RLE is a transit equity project that fulfills a commitment to the Far South Side by significantly improving transportation to this part of the city with 5.6 miles of new track and four new fully accessible rail stations at 103rd, 111th, Michigan near 116th and 130th Street.

By selecting the team that provided the best value to design and build the RLE Mainline Project, the CTA has reached yet another significant milestone for this historic project.

The RLE is a critical project for Chicago because:

• The Far South Side is the only area where CTA’s rail rapid transit service stops short of the city border.
• Communities here are largely populated with low-income, minority residents.
• For more than 50 years residents have been promised the line would be extended.

“The Red Line Extension corrects past transit inequity and increases access to the most affordable transportation in the city. Hiring the contracting team that can provide the best value to the CTA to construct the RLE is a consequential step that demonstrates our vow to build this project,” said CTA President Dorval R. Carter, Jr. “The CTA’s Red Line Extension Project is an example of how transportation dollars can be distributed to have lasting impact on the Far South Side including workforce and small business opportunities that create jobs and support families.”

RLE Design-Build Contractor

The Chicago Transit Board today approved the award of a $2.9 billion contract to Walsh-Vinci Transit Community Partners, which will engineer, design and build the Red Line Extension Mainline Project. The contractor was selected following a nearly two-year comprehensive procurement process. The contracting team will be responsible for building the Mainline project, which includes:

• Extension of the Red Line 5.6 miles from the 95th Street to south of 130th Street
• Building four new, accessible stations near 103rd Street, 111th Street, Michigan Avenue and 130th Street, each expected to include bus, bike, pedestrian and parking facilities.

Construction is expected to start in late 2025 and be completed by 2030.

To find and select a contractor to design and build the project, CTA underwent a two-step procurement process to select the most qualified contractor that provides the best value to CTA.

The first step was issuing a Request for Qualifications in 2022 to find contracting teams that had the experience and ability to build a large, complex rail project like the Red Line Extension. CTA subsequently qualified three contracting teams, including FH Paschen, Ragnar Benson, Milhouse and BOWA Joint Venture, Kiewit Infrastructure and Walsh-VINCI Transit Community Partners. CTA issued a Draft Request for Proposals to the potential bidders followed by a Final Request for Proposals in September 2023.

Following the rigorous two-year bid process, CTA determined that the proposal submitted by Walsh-VINCI Transit Community Partners provided the best value to CTA. In considering the bids, CTA considered the technical proposals on how the project would be built and the proposed cost. The Walsh-VINCI Transit Community Partners team brings to CTA its local, national and global transit construction experience.

Walsh-Vinci’s proposal was selected because it provided an innovative design and construction approach that will minimize impacts to community. Walsh-VINCI Transit Community Partners includes Walsh Construction, VINCI Construction, EXP, Systra, and other subcontractors.

• Walsh Construction has built or is building several transit projects in the Chicago area, including the $2.1 billion CTA RPM Phase One Project.
• VINCI Construction has completed more than $50 billion worth of design-build construction projects in 42 countries over the past 10 years in the U.S. and around the world.
• Systra has worked on multiple mega projects within the Chicago area, including CTA’s RPM Phase One Project and other U.S. transit projects.
• EXP has also worked on RPM in addition to other large Chicago area projects, including CTA projects such as the Garfield (Green Line) Gateway Project, O’Hare Blue Line Belmont and Jefferson Park improvements, Washington/Wabash Elevated Loop Station, 95th Street Terminal Improvement Project and the Forest Park Blue Line’s Illinois Medical District Station Rehabilitation.

CTA and the contractor will hold public meetings as design and construction planning begins on this exciting project. The contractor will work closely with local communities and CTA customers on construction impacts to neighborhoods and service.

Project budget and construction costs

The project’s budget has increased to $5.3 billion, which includes financing expenses, to cover cost increases for construction materials, labor and financing. The prior project budget was $3.6 billion before finance charges and $4.1 billion including financing costs. CTA is moving forward with the project to fulfill the long-ago promise to the Far South Side that the RLE would be built. Delaying the project would potentially increase the budget by several billions of dollars. Factors affecting the RLE project budget change include:

• A more than 60% increase in construction labor and materials costs 2020-2023, according to the Federal Highway Administration’s National Highway Construction Cost Index.
• Higher interest rates.
• Continued uncertainty and predictability around material delivery.
• Large pipeline of projects, particularly for civil infrastructure projects.

CTA intends to secure funding for the budget increase with CTA-issued bonds.

Workforce and Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE)-certified small businesses

The project will also generate long-lasting economic benefits for the Far South Side via small business and workforce/career opportunities with RLE and CTA, as well as new economic development in the project area.

Walsh-VINCI’s workforce goals for the contract as a percentage of total labor hours includes:

• Design
  • Service Area Economically Disadvantaged Area (EDA): 10 percent of total design hours
• Construction
  • Careers Opportunity Goal: 10 percent of total trade labor hours
  • Service Area Economically Disadvantaged Area: 35 percent of total trade labor hours
  • Union Apprentice: 15 percent of total trade labor hours – Goal is to develop pipeline for training, apprenticeship and jobs

Walsh-VINCI Transit Community Partners has committed to actively talking with union trades, workforce assistance agencies and other transit peers to establish partnerships and pipelines to connect individuals to training and career opportunities.

CTA assessed DBE goals on the contractor for including DBE-certified contractors, including 25 percent for project design and 22 percent for project construction.

Walsh-VINCI Transit Community Partners will host targeted outreach events with CTA to educate potential-DBE firms on the certification process and inform the DBE small business community and career-seekers on upcoming opportunities.

CTA also has various supportive services to assist small businesses including our Driving Small Businesses the Distance monthly webinar, our Small Business Educational Series, and our financial capacity and technical assistance program, Building Small Businesses.

To assist career-seekers interested in the construction industry, CTA has two sets of workforce assistance agency partners to provide training and support. The first group, our pre-apprenticeship providers, include Chicago Women in Trades, Metropolitan Family Services, and Revolution Workshop. The second group, our placement partners, include Chicago Women in Trades and Hire360.

Current project work

CTA announced earlier this year that it will begin performing advance construction work this fall, including demolition of properties acquired for the project and advance utility relocation, which includes removing wires and poles and relocating utility equipment ahead of major construction in late 2025.

Project benefits for surrounding communities

The Red Line Extension will offer many benefits to the Far South Side and its residents, including:

• The RLE will provide up to 30 minutes of time savings to riders traveling from the future 130th Station to the Loop.
• The RLE is expected to bring more than 25,000 jobs to Cook County in future years.
• Opportunities for workforce training, jobs and participation in the project by small Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE)-certified small businesses.
• CTA supports DBEs through efforts including the Building Small Business program and partnerships with its construction contractors.
• An award-winning RLE Transit-Supportive Development (TSD) Plan in partnership with Chicago’s Department of Planning and Development (DPD) that will guide the future development of the long-disinvested communities located near the RLE project area, and it reflects the vision of those who currently reside and conduct business in these communities.

For more information about the Red Line Extension Project, visit CTA Red Line Extension Project - CTA (transitchicago.com)

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