Metra slates talks on $34 million Elgin bridge rebuild
Metra riders on the Milwaukee West Line can learn more about a massive project to reconstruct the bridge carrying trains over the Fox River in Elgin at a public hearing March 2.
The $34 million rebuild should begin in late summer and will provide commuters with two tracks over the river, improving travel times and reliability.
The current bridge is a single track, which can cause traffic backups that resonate through the entire rail line when bottlenecks occur.
Metra officials are promising minimal service disruptions during the work.
Construction crews "will first build a new span immediately west of the existing bridge," spokesman Michael Gillis said.
"Then trains will use that span while they tear the old bridge down and build a second span in its place. When they're done they'll have two new spans, or basically one new bridge, that carries two tracks."
The public hearing runs from 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at The Centre of Elgin Recreation Facility located at 100 Symphony Way in Elgin.
Visitors can look at maps and exhibits and can ask questions throughout the session.
The current bridge is 136 years old and handles 54 commuter trains and about eight Canadian Pacific freight trains daily.
Metra received a $14 million federal grant for the project and CP is contributing $6 million. The remainder will come from Regional Transportation Authority bond funds.
Metra is also working on bridge upgrades on its Union Pacific North Line. The agency expects to start replacing bridges on the inbound tracks at 11 locations in Chicago this summer and finish in two years.