The first sign of construction. Funny how passing March 21 suddenly makes orange barrels bloom?

 

University-Cedar rapid station update

 

 

 

 

 

Well, "thanks" to ODOT and its Inner Belt bridge-destruction imposed closure of all east-side rail services, I hope GCRTA is at least using this opportunity to get a lot of uninterrupted trackside construction work done on the station!

Another one of those dreaded half system-wide rail closures due to highway construction.  RTA seems to have more of these than any other transit agency I'm aware of.  Other cities seem to do the work at night where there's less service disruption.  Not good ol' RTA...

 

... in a case of payback, of sorts, RTA literature had noted that Mayfield Road would be closed on a weekend day(s) toward the end of March to remove the unused rail bridge so that work on the new Little Italy-UC station could commence.  As far as I know that hasn't happened.  Any word?

 

Another one of those dreaded half system-wide rail closures due to highway construction.  RTA seems to have more of these than any other transit agency I'm aware of.  Other cities seem to do the work at night where there's less service disruption.  Not good ol' RTA...

 

... in a case of payback, of sorts, RTA literature had noted that Mayfield Road would be closed on a weekend day(s) toward the end of March to remove the unused rail bridge so that work on the new Little Italy-UC station could commence.  As far as I know that hasn't happened.  Any word?

 

I drove by yesterday and the span in question seemed to be gone.

Thanks for the pics, Clueless!  Looking good.

Another one of those dreaded half system-wide rail closures due to highway construction.  RTA seems to have more of these than any other transit agency I'm aware of.  Other cities seem to do the work at night where there's less service disruption.  Not good ol' RTA...

 

... in a case of payback, of sorts, RTA literature had noted that Mayfield Road would be closed on a weekend day(s) toward the end of March to remove the unused rail bridge so that work on the new Little Italy-UC station could commence.  As far as I know that hasn't happened.  Any word?

 

I get traffic alerts by Twitter and I've seen some mentions of Mayfield Road being closed.

Another one of those dreaded half system-wide rail closures due to highway construction.  RTA seems to have more of these than any other transit agency I'm aware of.  Other cities seem to do the work at night where there's less service disruption.  Not good ol' RTA...

 

... in a case of payback, of sorts, RTA literature had noted that Mayfield Road would be closed on a weekend day(s) toward the end of March to remove the unused rail bridge so that work on the new Little Italy-UC station could commence.  As far as I know that hasn't happened.  Any word?

 

I get traffic alerts by Twitter and I've seen some mentions of Mayfield Road being closed.

 

It has already happened:

 

Nice! And wow -- we go through a full change of seasons in about three days!

^^Awesome stuff; thanks for that.

Driving by the UC station construction site yesterday and today, was surprised to see that they have already started to demolish the bus waiting area across the street from the new waiting area on Cedar.  Would have thought this would have been one of the last things to be done since the new station is still probably a couple months away from opening.  If I recall correctly this spot is suppose to be turned into a green area.

RTA applied for a tiger grant to rebuild the brook park station.

 

http://www.portofcleveland.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Co-applicant-letter-from-City-of-Cleveland.pdf

RTA applied for a tiger grant to rebuild the brook park station.

 

http://www.portofcleveland.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Co-applicant-letter-from-City-of-Cleveland.pdf

 

This is one of five station projects GCRTA has "underway" (either under construction or in an advanced stage of planning/design). In total, these rail stations amount to a $60 million total investment in our metro area's neighborhoods.

Is this because of the two station projects or because of ODOT work?

 

Greater Cleve RTA ‏@GCRTA  8m

East Side Red Line replaced w/ shuttles btwn Tower City & Windermere Sat 5/10 & Sun 5/11 due to construction.

This weekend, RTA crews need to do some work in that section of track. Other RTA crews will take advantage of the shutdown to finish as many track upgrades as they can.

This weekend, RTA crews need to do some work in that section of track. Other RTA crews will take advantage of the shutdown to finish as many track upgrades as they can.

 

Thanks.

At All Aboard Ohio's urging, ODOT agreed to pay 80% of the $3.2M cost of lengthening an existing one-car platform at E105-Quincy @GCRTA Red Line rail station, plus new handicapped access from East 105th Street.

 

We also asked ODOT to consider relocating the East 79th station to the East 89th/Buckeye/Woodland area where more Transit Oriented Development and more ridership may be possible. However GCRTA will consider this separately as part of alternatives to simply closing the East 79th station.

 

Still, these transit investments are a small fraction of the total cost of the Opportunity Corridor highway project. For more detail, see:

http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2014/05/opportunity_corridor_gets

 

Also, see:

http://allaboardohio.org/2014/01/09/odot-urged-to-add-transit-tod-in-clevelands-opportunity-corridor/

^I'm glad to see AAO persuaded ODOT to mostly fund extending the E. 105 platform.  But $3.2M seems quite expensive for this.  I'll bet I could make a few calls and get a credible construction company to extend this platform for $50K or less ... in wood.  I'm sure a wooden platform with the ADA-required rubberized tactile yellow edges, I'll bet, could be done for this price.  Wooden platforms can be just as sturdy and are probably easier to maintain than concrete.  Personally, I like the slight give wood has under my feet as opposed to concrete.  Chicago has mostly wooden platforms on the L no doubt because they are considerably lighter weight than concrete... and E. 105 is a lower patronage station, anyway, with the existing 1-car platform area already done in concrete... So why not just extend it in wood, save the cash and have an equally effective, cheaper to build and maintain extended platform?  ... I'm just sayin'...

^Per KJP's post, the project would also include new handicapped access from East 105th Street, which I assume means an elevator. 

^Per KJP's post, the project would also include new handicapped access from East 105th Street, which I assume means an elevator. 

 

Doh!  :-o... as they say, reading is fundamental... Surprising though, that ODOT/RTA could justify 2 handicapped elevators at a lighter-used station like Quincy/E. 105 but none at a somewhat lighter station like E. 79 which threatens to close that station, leaving residents w/o downtown bus or rail service... hmmm.

^Yeah, I don't get it either. I nought maybe there wasn't an elevator at the Quincy head house, but the RTA site confirms it's already accessible.

Here's what All Aboard Ohio suggested in its formal input to ODOT and the Federal Highway Administration (text descriptions are at the link in my previous post). Our basic suggestion was that the current station can accommodate only one-car trains stopping at the existing platform and needs to be lengthened to accommodate 2-car or even 3-car trains. Furthermore, we suggested the station platform be lengthened to go under East 105th with a second ADA-compliant access point be provided where the prior one existed -- on the east side of East 105th so patrons can access future development that the Clinic is considering along 105th from Carnegie south to Quincy. We are hopeful these are designed in a pedestrian accessible manner with some supportive retailers and that new/renovated housing in the area also be part of the CDC's vision.....

 

 

EDIT: this is what the Opportunity Corridor FEIS (http://www.dot.state.oh.us/projects/ClevelandUrbanCoreProjects/OpportunityCorridor/Documents/_Cleveland%20Opportunity%20Corridor%20Project%20FEIS-ROD.pdf) said about the East 105th-Quincy station modification:

 

[Page 3-42]

ODOT will fund 80-percent (up to $3.2 million) of a project to improve the existing GCRTA E.

105th Street-Quincy Avenue train station. The improvement project would extend the station

platform to accommodate three-car service and construct a new entrance at E. 105th Street. The

station improvements would be scheduled to coincide with the construction of the Opportunity

Corridor bridge over the GCRTA Red Line to minimize impacts to transit service. However, the

project would be independently planned, designed and constructed by GCRTA.

 

[Page 3-45]

....Finally, in conjunction with the Opportunity Corridor project, ODOT will fund 80-percent (up to $3.2

million) of a project to extend the platform and construct a new entrance to the existing GCRTA E. 105th

Street-Quincy Avenue train station. These operational and accessibility improvements are part of GCRTA’s

long-term goals for this train station. While the project would be independently administered by GCRTA,

the station improvements would be scheduled to coincide with the construction of the Opportunity

Corridor bridge over the GCRTA Red Line to minimize impacts to transit service.

 

[Page 4-8]

....Finally, in conjunction with the Opportunity Corridor project, ODOT will fund 80-percent (up to $3.2

million) of a project to improve the existing GCRTA E. 105th Street-Quincy Avenue train station. The

platform at this station is one of only two within the GCRTA system that can only service one train car.

The improvement project would extend the platform to allow three-car service, which is GCRTA’s

standard. The improvement project would also construct a new entrance at E. 105th Street. The entrance

would provide both stair and elevator access to comply with the requirements of the American with

Disabilities Act (ADA). The station improvements would be scheduled to coincide with the construction of

the Opportunity Corridor bridge over the GCRTA Red Line to minimize impacts to transit service.

However, the project would be independently planned, designed and constructed by GCRTA.

 

In a letter dated Feb. 14, 2014 (see Appendix A), GCRTA expressed their support of the closure of Quincy

Avenue and the funding of the improvements to the E. 105th Street-Quincy Avenue train station. The

letter also indicated that GCRTA is currently studying the utilization and viability of the E. 79th Street

rapid transit stations. This study is scheduled for completion prior to the end of 2014.

 

ODOT's specific responses to All Aboard Ohio's input appear in Appendix B – Page 6 at the following link:

http://www.dot.state.oh.us/projects/ClevelandUrbanCoreProjects/OpportunityCorridor/Documents/Appendix%20B.%20Public%20Comment%20Summary%20and%20Responses.pdf

 

 

Discussion of the closure of Quincy Avenue under the CSX tracks is not part of any GCRTA rail construction project and thus was moved to the Opportunity Corridor topic.

FYI, during the East Side rail shutdown, which starts June 7, RTA and / or ODOT will work on the following projects.

* Reconstruct Red Line track from Kinsman to the Cedar-University Station

* Bridge and track relocation at the Little Italy-University Circle Station

* Cedar-University Station

* The Innerbelt Bridge

* Bridge work at the Buckeye-Woodhill Station

* Begin work at the Lee-Van Aken Station site

* Upgrade rail crossings on Shaker Square

* Replace numerous rail ties

* Work on the East 34th Street station canopy

* Misc. Power and Way work

 

The list speaks for itself.

 

What, no cancer curing?

^So, are you saying, the tracks will be widened at Little Italy to accommodate a more substantial platform at the new station?  Also, is RTA totally replacing the large, crumbling tunnels at Woodhill over the Blue/Green tracks?  A temporary ped bridge has been in place for over a month there.

^So, are you saying, the tracks will be widened at Little Italy to accommodate a more substantial platform at the new station?  Also, is RTA totally replacing the large, crumbling tunnels at Woodhill over the Blue/Green tracks?  A temporary ped bridge has been in place for over a month there.

 

Sorry to jump in, but the eastbound and westbound tracks have to be spread apart to insert a station platform and accessway, regardless of platform width, no matter what as the tracks are separated by the minimum distance, as measured from one track centerline to another.

^Thanks, but wasn't there a planned station there before by the Vans (hence the preexisting "vault")?

^Thanks, but wasn't there a planned station there before by the Vans (hence the preexisting "vault")?

 

Yes, but by the time CTS got around to finishing the Rapid 25 years later, the tracks CTS built were aligned in such a way that it didn't acknowledge the Mayfield station infrastructure built by the Van Sweringens. The unused bridge to the right of the other bridges over Mayfield was for a long-gone industrial siding track for freight rail shipments. The bridge was removed by GCRTA earlier this year (see the time-lapse video posted in this thread). The new bridge for the eastbound Red Line track will be built approximately between the existing Red Line bridge and the since-removed industrial track bridge....

 

 

BTW, just in case anyone is curious, the pair of tracks on the left is CSX's Midwest-East Coast mainline (about 60 freight trains a day). The two vacant track spaces are for the Cleveland Union Terminal (today's Tower City Center) used exclusively by passenger trains until 1971. The next pair of tracks (existing) are for Norfolk Southern's Chicago-Buffalo line which sees about 20 daily freight trains a day through here. And the last two sets of tracks, to the right, are for the Red Line which sees about 160 trains a day through here.

I just went back through the thread to look for some photos and renderings of the BlueLine terminus project. I notice that constuction is well underway and wanted to get a refresher of whats going on. Did we lose that information in the GUOCof13?

Disregard. I just made this myself instead. I was really just interested in the before/after aspect of it all.

 

Yes, but by the time CTS got around to finishing the Rapid 25 years later, the tracks CTS built were aligned in such a way that it didn't acknowledge the Mayfield station infrastructure built by the Van Sweringens. The unused bridge to the right of the other bridges over Mayfield was for a long-gone industrial siding track for freight rail shipments. The bridge was removed by GCRTA earlier this year (see the time-lapse video posted in this thread). The new bridge for the eastbound Red Line track will be built approximately between the existing Red Line bridge and the since-removed industrial track bridge....

 

 

BTW, just in case anyone is curious, the pair of tracks on the left is CSX's Midwest-East Coast mainline (about 60 freight trains a day). The two vacant track spaces are for the Cleveland Union Terminal (today's Tower City Center) used exclusively by passenger trains until 1971. The next pair of tracks (existing) are for Norfolk Southern's Chicago-Buffalo line which sees about 20 daily freight trains a day through here. And the last two sets of tracks, to the right, are for the Red Line which sees about 160 trains a day through here.

 

Gotcha. It now makes some sense as to why the new Little Italy station is significantly more expensive than the other Red Line rebuilds.  In relocating a track and its catenary, they’re essentially building a couple hundred feet of new single-track HRT ROW, including a new overpass span. … Looking back on it, failing to open a station at this location is one of CTS’s bigger blunders when building the Red Line in the 1950s – we are now undoing a 60-year-old mistake the Van Sweringens had gotten right in the late 1920s --- to the tune of $17M… ouch!

Gotcha. It now makes some sense as to why the new Little Italy station is significantly more expensive than the other Red Line rebuilds.  In relocating a track and its catenary, they’re essentially building a couple hundred feet of new single-track HRT ROW, including a new overpass span. … Looking back on it, failing to open a station at this location is one of CTS’s bigger blunders when building the Red Line in the 1950s – we are now undoing a 60-year-old mistake the Van Sweringens had gotten right in the late 1920s --- to the tune of $17M… ouch!

 

Then again, in 1954-55, Little Italy didn't want a station here. Think about that era in what Little Italy was, and what many east-side neighborhoods were becoming. This was an era when fear and exclusion were stronger influences than vision/hope in shaping the urban form, what little visioning existed for cities back then. Also a station on Euclid Avenue was seen as a good way to tap into feeder traffic to/from the #6 bus line.

 

But as history has often shown, the Van's knew exactly what they were doing.

 

BTW, also notice at the bottom of the above picture that the Red Line is just coming off an elevated "flyover" structure of the since-removed industrial siding track. So some new fill and retaining wall is needed to widen the north end of the flyover structure so the eastbound GCRTA track can start spreading away from the westbound GCRTA track.

^Good points.  It's amazing how many communities saw, and still see (as in the recent case of Berea rejecting the Red Line extension), rapid transit as a source of intrusion and community threat as opposed to quality living and urban building... Glad to see the new Little Italy is opening up and moving away from its more insular past.

But as history has often shown, the Van's knew exactly what they were doing.

 

What should we be doing next that is not already in the works but that the Van's have already thought of?

What should we be doing next that is not already in the works but that the Van's have already thought of?

 

What a great, thought-provoking question. I'm thinking.....

 

One that comes to mind right now is that anything built between Huron Road and Canal Road south of Tower City should be built on stilts -- preferably 20 feet above that parking lot. The Van's also planned to build along Ontario, over the RTA/CUT right of way, from Public Square to points southward. With that same thinking, the new city block that ODOT is creating atop Commercial Road hill suggests building over the RTA/CUT right of way -- including a new Rapid station here. This would also be a more convenient station for St. Vincent Hospital, Tri-C, USPS Cleveland, and whatever else gets developed atop Commercial Road hill.

 

Otherwise, I'll have to go back and look at everything that the Van's planned to do up until the start of the Great Depression.

Some photos I shot today from the parking deck off Mayfield at West 115th. Both elevators were out for maintenance, so I climbed the stairs to the 25th level (or so it seemed!) of the parking deck to get these views of construction of the Little Italy station......

 

Mayfield Road is closed at the tracks until June 29:

 

Views from the parking deck (notice the existing Euclid-East 120th station at the far upper-left):

 

The earthmover is working where the Little Italy station headhouse will be located:

 

Norfolk Southern freight train in foreground, Little Italy in the background and GCRTA Red Line in between -- with the Little Italy station site at left:

 

Lots of nice density and mixed use is an easy walk from the Little Italy station site:

 

More coming with the $100 million mixed-use Intesa development to replace this parking lot, with groundbreaking due this Fall (notice construction on the CIA expansion is progressing):

With the east Red Line and Mayfield both closed until late June, you'd think RTA should make a ton of headway with the new station...

 

KJP's 2nd photo shows how close the old E. 120 station is to the new site... Amazing what a difference a couple hundred feet will make.  I have no doubt this station will be an instant hit -- which will have has much to do with its new/better location as well as simply having an attractive, safe, open place to board the trains.

 

btw, in the 6th photo, that Victorian-era redbrick mansion shown from the side, just in front of the terrace homes, is the Cozad-Bates House; a major stop on the Underground Railroad during the Civil War... People are working to restore this beautiful building and turn it into a museum which will only further strengthen this great, diverse neighborhood.

On a lighter note, I hope RTA comes up with another name for the Little Italy station ... The "Little Italy-University Circle" station is a mouthful of syllables.  Good luck hearing all that flow from the mouths of your friendly, neighborhood Red Line motormen and women.  UC-Little Italy, or Little Italy-UC works much better.

Note also how much track they removed -- including the westbound track too!

 

On a lighter note, I hope RTA comes up with another name for the Little Italy station ... The "Little Italy-University Circle" station is a mouthful of syllables.  Good luck hearing all that flow from the mouths of your friendly, neighborhood Red Line motormen and women.  UC-Little Italy, or Little Italy-UC works much better.

 

With development planned to spread south along East 105th and the East 105th-Quincy station due to be expanded to actually have an entry/exit onto East 105th again (see Opportunity Corridor thread), the Red Line will soon have THREE stations in University Circle -- that's two more than the Red Line has downtown! So, to associate them to UC yet differentiate them, how about calling them "UC-Cedar", "UC-Little Italy" and "UC-105"? :)

Next stop 'Uptown'...Why not call it Uptown.

KJP's 2nd photo shows how close the old E. 120 station is to the new site... Amazing what a difference a couple hundred feet will make.  I have no doubt this station will be an instant hit -- which will have has much to do with its new/better location as well as simply having an attractive, safe, open place to board the trains.

 

When the relocation of the Euclid-E120th station to Mayfield Road was first recommended in the Dual Hub study, the number of boardings was projected to increase from 100 or so per day at the current station to more than 700 at Mayfield Road. While I don't have current data, I do think Euclid-E120th is a slightly busier station today than it was in the mid-1990s considering the expansion of CWRU, CIA and new area housing. But the Mayfield station is a safer setting (it doesn't have the "endless tunnel" that Euclid has under the tracks), a nicer looking and smelling station, and more homes, stores, restaurants, classrooms, offices, etc. within a short walk of the station -- and more coming.

Next stop 'Uptown'...Why not call it Uptown.

Uptown is not a neighborhood.  I think this would be the most confusing name to chose.  The station is in the University neighborhood and in the sub neighborhood of Little Italy.  The UC-LI name makes the most sense from a practical purpose and for branding and marketing purposes for businesses in the immediate area.

A neighborhood name isn't needed for a station name. Besides, we're starting to wander off topic. My fault to mentioning the station names. Point was -- UC will soon have THREE stations on the Red Line. Downtown has only one.

A neighborhood name isn't needed for a station name. Besides, we're starting to wander off topic. My fault to mentioning the station names. Point was -- UC will soon have THREE stations on the Red Line. Downtown has only one.

 

All do respect, this is about "non service" issues and station naming is something to think about.  How does the Station relate to the neighborhood?  How will RTA reach to it's neighbors to encourage them use the station.  How will RTA work with businesses and advertisers to mention their location to the new station on websites and advertisements?

 

So if the station were named uptown, people living in the region what have to say, "Where is that?".  Most people know of and are able to mentally & physically locate "University (Circle)" and/or "Little Italy".  Name recognition is very important to public transportation.  Selecting the right station name will make it feel as though it has been a part of the fabric of the neighborhood for a very long time even though its new.

I think a station name is a service issue, especially as it relates to helping passengers know where to get off the train. This thread is about rail CONSTRUCTION projects.

Next stop 'Uptown'...Why not call it Uptown.

Uptown is not a neighborhood.

 

TowerCity is not a neighborhood either...

Nor is the Airport.

Not a great photo, but here's a construction progress shot of the UC station I snapped last week:

 

 

I really like the look of this thing.

Thanks! I was hoping to get over there to take a picture of the UC-Cedar station, too, but nature was calling me home.....

 

I also see that GCRTA is using the new articulateds as the Red Line shuttle buses on the east side. I was hoping to get a picture, but wasn't able to.