From downtown to the southside people need to remember it cost nearly $500k per mile of track laid and since a new double track line will be need that’s a cost of $1 million per mile not including concrete pillars, structures, and stations just to lay new track. If CTA really wanted to expand and be cost effective to the south east side then buy the south Chicago Metra electric branch from 70th and Kenwood to 93rd st. and extend the Green line from 63rd and cottage grove down to the Metra/IC make a flyover and build parallel tracks for CTA use from 63 to 70th and connect it to the south Chicago branch and eliminate the Metra under way connection. This would be at a cost of 1/10th the cost of the Gold/Grey line and provide the same extended CTA rail service for the east side. A similar project was done with the CTA decades ago it it now called the Yellow line (Skokie swift) was once the North shore line.

next the Red line expansion is a good idea but again a different ROW will be needed to keep the cost minimal. Im inclined to say when you have a good idea stick with it and running down the middle of the expressway is the best. Id continue the Red line down I-57 to 119th. st or build it as a branch line that connects to 95th st. station that’s the best possible solution for the lowest cost.

Orange line yes the poster above was right extending the line would complicate things to much for midway its best to terminate orange line trains at midway and use it as a hub. In that respect a light rail system could be build from midway down to ford city and points further south (Oak lawn) to free up bus transit along Cicero. Again most cost effective solution Only the fact that we would need new light rail train cars and facilities would push the price up for that project.

It appears, while a very nice idea, the costs are way out of bounds for a CTA type of fare structure to support.

You and the commenter before you are quite right to point out that James Withrow’s Gold Line proposal had its origins and inspiration in Mike Payne’s Gray Line idea. I agree with all your comments on extending CTA service to the other Metra Electric branches, and I’d only add that the South Chicago branch might be the best place to start. If it proves to be a success, it will be easier to take on the Blue Island branch and Hegewisch.
-Sam Feldman

Orange Line Extension:
Until last year, I thought extending the Orange Line to Ford City was the only reasonable rail expansion proposal on the table for all the reasons given in the article. I have since come to understand that this extension would disrupt service to Midway Airport that comprises a natural transportation center and travel destination. Truncating buses at Ford City would imposes an inconvenience, time, and a cost for the transfer for this relatively short distance.
Furthermore, I see the Midway bus terminal expanding to host express routes, foremost to Rosemont and to West Suburban employment centers such as Willow Springs, Oakbrook, O’Hare, Elmhurst-Addison and Thorndale; and to Metra connections at Hinsdale, Elmhurst, and Bensenville to outlying western suburbs. These express routes would use the Tri-State Tollway for much of the way.
For these reasons, I would rather see a busway constructed between Ford City and Midway if traffic congestion and signals on Cicero result in significant differences in passenger-hours of travel or unrealized potential riders.
However, there may be a trade-off for the majority of riders continuing beyond Midway that also need to be considered. Would more transit users be gained with additional suburban access than lost potential new or diverted transit riders traveling into the city?

Gold Line:
James Withrow is credited here for suggesting the Gold Line; but I know Mike Payne has pushed this idea as the Gray Line for a number of years. Mike also proposed extending Gray Line service to 115th (at Cottage Grove) on the Mainline. I strongly urge expanding Gold Line service to include the Mainline with branches to Blue Island and Hegewisch. These branches provide local services mostly within the city, reduce the distances for Pace feeder buses, eliminate the needs for a costly, nearly $1-billion extension of a parallel Red Line, reduce competing express bus services, and offer integrated connections between the suburbs and City. The CTA express buses, albeit attractive for speed and cost, divert riders and reduce efficient utilization of both the CTA and Metra rail systems and CTA arterial routes. The differentials in rail and bus fares and transfer costs exacerbates the problem. A premium service is provided at a bargain price. In the Loop, precious street lane capacity is consumed by buses.
I think it’s possible to integrate a CTA Gold Line service with Metra without costly changes to segregate tracks through fare controls. The challenge is for outbound ticket inspection at the gate or on board Metra and NICTD trains. Boarding any inbound train after paying a fare is no problem.
I’ve studied the Millennium Park (Randolph St) terminal and think there is adequate capacity for 8-min South Chicago and respective 16-min Hegewisch and Blue Island Branch (8-min Mainline) headways. This would increase the average wait time by only two minutes in comparison to a Red Line extension.
A reconfiguration of turnouts leading to the platform tracks may be needed at Millennium Park. The other needs are a fourth main track between Roosevelt and Monroe, and a platform for South Shore (NICTD) trains at Van Buren, bi-directional signaling and positive train control, and expansion of 115th Street with at least a third track and second platform.
Additional trains would be needed for either a Red Line extension or the Gold Line, so the difference in cost would be small, given the need to replace life-expiring Metra railcars.

Green Line:
A new station at 18th St is a commendable idea; and so is Balbo, given development in the area and convenience for Loop L routes.

It is all the more essential to preserve the Canadian National tracks across the South Loop along 16th Street for a connection between McCormick Place and Union Station with connections to West and North Suburban Metra Lines. Selected North Central (to O’Hare Transfer) and Milwaukee District trains could be extended to McCormick Place for connections with the Gold Line, Electric District and South Shore trains and minimize the number of transfers for trips across the region. This is especially important for improving access between high unemployment and job-rich areas.

The metaphore of a tree with roots on the South Side is unfortunately parochial and fails to address the needs for access between Chicago and its suburbs. More fitting would be a heart on the South Side with arteries across the region.

http://www.grayline.20m.com/“