Rep. García’s Statement on Funding for CTA Red Line Extension in the President's Budget

CHICAGO — Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Transportation announced 18 large transit projects have been selected to receive funding in President Biden's FY24 Budget Request, including $350 million for CTA’s Red Line Extension (RLE) project in Chicago. Congressman Jesús “Chuy” García (IL-04), a member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and co-founder of the Future of Transportation Caucus, issued the following statement:

“I represent a working-class community where neighbors rely on public transportation to get to work, school, shopping, and recreational activities. Public transit isn't an option for many of them, it's a lifeline.” said Congressman García. “Since my first day in Washington, I have been a champion of the Red Line extension project not only as a matter of transit-oriented development, but as a matter of equity and inclusion. This project, which was promised to Chicagoans 50 years ago, will create new economic opportunities and transportation choices for mixed-income residents in Chicago’s South Side. Our country needs a new vision for transportation that is affordable, reliable, accessible, and safe. This investment in the RLE is an important step forward in that direction.”

Last February, the Illinois Congressional Delegation sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Transportation and the White House Office of Management and Budget urging them to provide the City of Chicago’s Red Line Extension project with the maximum 60 percent federal cost share for which it is eligible under the Federal Transit Administration’s Capital Investment Grant program.

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