Tower 18 R.I.P.

The end is near.....this coming weekend, Tower 18 is scheduled to be dismantled and moved to the temporary location in the long bungalow at track level between Lake and Randolph. An ingenious plan will keep trains running all through the weekend changeover without the need to throw any switches by hand.

David Harrison

Found an RFP for this online:

"Project Title: Loop Signals Project
Managing Department: Power & Way Construction

Justification of Need: Upgrade Towers and Interlocking Control Systems to current technology; Tower 18 past useful life Total Project Budget: $103.2M
Construction Contract Value: $67.5M
Earned to Date: $37.9M or 56.1%
Percent Change Orders to Construction
Contract: 39.8%
Percent Time Used to Date: 85.9%
Funding Source: FTA, RTA and Bond Funds
Estimated Start Date/Estimated Length of Project NTP 2/21/07; Original Completion Date 9/2009; Revised Completion Date 9/2010
Project Manager: Barney Gray (GM) and Brittany Dyra (PM)
Detailed Overview of Scope:
- New Bi-directional Cab Signal System for the Loop
- Construction of new Control Tower at Lake/Wells
- New control panel with remote controls for Tower 12 and Jefferson
- Installation of a new Signal Facility Building at Randolph/Wells
- Installation of a new Tower 12 Relay House
- Installation of new Interlocking at Jefferson"

For a minute there I thought they were going to remove the tower so the "missing" tracks in 18th's 3/4 "grand union" could be put in, but it looks like that's not part of this project. Also if they're looking for a place to put a replacement tower, maybe they should consider buying some condo space on the northeast side of the interlocking: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4oMsAoSQ ... re=related (just kidding....).

Interesting information, thanks for posting it. Yes, the new tower will be constructed where the old one is presently located. And there will never be a "grand union" as there are no plans for any routes that would use such.



What's gonna happen...in this view looking south...Orange and Brown line will be linked and at Tower 18 turn from Wells to Lake Street. Green and Pink will be rerouted and turn from Lake ST to Wells. Amazing plan...no switches have to be hand thrown, no line crosses over the tracks of another line, no home signals.

David Harrison

Chicagopcclcars wrote:What's gonna happen...in this view looking south...Orange and Brown line will be linked and at Tower 18 turn from Wells to Lake Street. Green and Pink will be rerouted and turn from Lake ST to Wells. Amazing plan...no switches have to be hand thrown, no line crosses over the tracks of another line, no home signals.

So are they going to turn Pink back north at Tower 12, then?

doepack wrote:

Chicagopcclcars wrote:What's gonna happen...in this view looking south...Orange and Brown line will be linked and at Tower 18 turn from Wells to Lake Street. Green and Pink will be rerouted and turn from Lake ST to Wells. Amazing plan...no switches have to be hand thrown, no line crosses over the tracks of another line, no home signals.

So are they going to turn Pink back north at Tower 12, then?

Pink line trains will operate in service between Library and Roosevelt. Thus all Loop trains will be on the elevated between Tower 12 and Roosevelt. Roosevelt will be advertised as the BIG TRANSFER POINT for all "L" service downtown, including the Red line, but not the Blue line. But for a free transfer to the Blue line, change at Roosevelt to ride to CLark/Lake. The Pink line will turn in the middle track south of Roosevelt.

And.....if something goes wrong and regular service is not available for the Monday am rush.... the Purple might go into the subway and be turned at 37th middle on the Green line. Turning at Roosevelt subway would be somewhat cumbersome.

David Harrison

doepack wrote:

Chicagopcclcars wrote:What's gonna happen...in this view looking south...Orange and Brown line will be linked and at Tower 18 turn from Wells to Lake Street. Green and Pink will be rerouted and turn from Lake ST to Wells. Amazing plan...no switches have to be hand thrown, no line crosses over the tracks of another line, no home signals.

Amazing. At some point, the purple Evanston trains will be the only one making a complete circuit of the Loop? Could they run a 2 car Loop Shuttle on the inside track?
I don't know how many want a ride from Wabash-Wells or Lake-Jackson stations?? This may depend if one needs to be on State st or North Michigan Ave for your final destination downtown.

GWoodle wrote:

doepack wrote:

Chicagopcclcars wrote:What's gonna happen...in this view looking south...Orange and Brown line will be linked and at Tower 18 turn from Wells to Lake Street. Green and Pink will be rerouted and turn from Lake ST to Wells. Amazing plan...no switches have to be hand thrown, no line crosses over the tracks of another line, no home signals.

Amazing. At some point, the purple Evanston trains will be the only one making a complete circuit of the Loop? Could they run a 2 car Loop Shuttle on the inside track?
I don't know how many want a ride from Wabash-Wells or Lake-Jackson stations?? This may depend if one needs to be on State st or North Michigan Ave for your final destination downtown.

I'm sorry, but you evidently didn't understand this entire post. This reroute is planned for this weekend only, so no Purple line is involved. My discussion about the Purple on the Monday was only a...."what if???"

There cannot be any Loop shuttle because that would disrupt the simplicity of the train movements at Tower 18. Roosevelt will be advertised as the Grand Transfer Point. Riders from the north side have the alternative of using the Red line. Too all others, yes it might take more time to get to their usual station which is one reason to do this sort of move on the weekend.

David Harrison

Final date set.....Nov. 14, Nov. 15.

David Harrison

Explanation and maps are up on the CTA website.

http://www.transitchicago.com/news/defa ... cleId=2497

David Harrison

P.S. Is anyone reading this forum??

Chicagopcclcars wrote:P.S. Is anyone reading this forum??

In case you haven't noticed, the message boards here at railroad.net have a distinct east-coast vibe to it; forums like MN, LIRR, and especially NJT are quite busy. As a result, the midwest forums (which would be of more interest to us) are much slower by comparison, and can definitely hit prolonged slow spots, with no posts for days at a time. I think part of it is because this site is unknown to a lot of midwest railfans, and I'd also say about 95% of the posters that frequent the east coast transit boards here know very little about Chicago operations, we seem to have a language unto our own. Not saying it's right or wrong, but it is what it is.

Thanks for the update, David...

Well, here's one Easterner who follows the CTA and Metra forums to keep up -- I'm always interested in what's going on in Chicago. FWIW

I'll second that. Only had one trip to Chicago to get to experience the L, but enjoyed it thoroughly (even in Jan!). Thanks for the updates.

P.S. Is anyone reading this forum??

Yes. I find the signal to noise ratio and site layout much preferable to the yahoo CTA group.