The Ashland Bus Rapid Transit is one of the planned bus rapid transit corridors in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. The service will run on Ashland Avenue from

Irving Park Road Illinois Route 19 (abbreviated IL-19, or simply Illinois 19) is a major east–west arterial state highway in northeastern Illinois, United States. It runs from Illinois Route 25 (Liberty St.) in Elgin, to Lake Shore Drive ( U.S. Route 41) ...

to 95th Street, a distance of approximately 17 miles. The route would serve various destinations including the

Illinois Medical District The Illinois Medical District (IMD) is a special-use zoning district two miles west of the Loop in Chicago, Illinois. The Illinois Medical District consists of 560 acres of medical research facilities, labs, a biotechnology business incuba ...

, the

University of Illinois at Chicago The University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) is a public research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its campus is in the Near West Side community area, adjacent to the Chicago Loop. The second campus established under the Universi ...

Malcolm X College Malcolm X College, one of the City Colleges of Chicago, is a two-year college located on the Near West Side of Chicago, Illinois. It was founded as Crane Junior College in 1911 and was the first of the City Colleges. Crane ceased operation durin ...

, and the

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. It would also provide a connection to seven

Chicago Transit Authority The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) is the operator of public transport, mass transit in Chicago, Illinois, United States, and some of its suburbs, including the trains of the Chicago "L" and List of Chicago Transit Authority bus routes, CTA bu ...

subway/elevated rail stations. Buses would operate using an exclusive lane in the center of the street, with bus platforms located in the median. The service would also utilize features such as

transit signal priority Bus priority or transit signal priority (TSP) is a name for various techniques to improve service and reduce delay for mass transit vehicles at intersections (or junctions) controlled by traffic signals. TSP techniques are most commonly associa ...

and pre-paid fares. CTA estimates that bus speeds on the Ashland BRT would be up to 83% faster than the existing local route.Ashland Bus Rapid Transit Project Website
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History

Planning and public engagement were conducted throughout 2012 and 2013. The project's Environmental Assessment was released in November 2013, finding no significant impacts. The project has generated some opposition due to concerns about impacts on automobile traffic and left-turn restrictions. The CTA responded by agreeing to consider restoring some of the left turns. Despite these concessions, opponents were still not impressed, citing reduced car lanes and the project's "high price tag". The project as a whole was eventually stalled due to oppositions from motorists, especially from the Fulton Market Association. The project would advance in three phases, with the first phase running 5.5 miles from Cortland Street to 31st Street.

References

{{reflist

External links

Official CTA project website

BRT Chicago
Chicago Transit Authority Rapid transit in Illinois Bus transportation in Illinois Proposed bus rapid transit in the United States Transportation in Chicago

History

See also

References

External links