CME.09 – Beyond C.R.E.A.T.E. Freight Bottlenecks
Team Members Heading link
- Muhammad Abdullah
- Noah Billing
- Eryka Ciszek
- Michal Kopec
- Darek Michniak
- Kamil Zalewski
Project Description Heading link
Freight bottlenecks in the Chicagoland area caused 600 million hours of delays in 2019, costing the U.S. economy 420 billion dollars in extra costs. The railroad infrastructure in Chicago is vast, being owned by several national rail companies in both the U.S. and Canada. The purpose of this project is to investigate the annual improvements that can be made to the Norfolk Southern railroad crossings by creating an overpass or an underpass. Potential locations were identified, and then a feasibility study was conducted on the location that would be of most benefit. Three locations were investigated: the first one was Norfolk Southern and Morgan Street; the second was 87th Street and Rockwell Street; and the last one was 95th Street and S. Eggleston Ave. The plan is to analyze these locations individually and focus on multiple criteria to help determine the ideal location. The few main aspects that were focused on are as follows: the number of lanes, number of tracks, and daily affected trains in the area. This study also analyzed and compared the proximity to businesses and connecting roadways that would be affected. After careful consideration, a simply supported steel-span bridge overpass at the crossing on 87th street and Rockwell street was decided upon. The goal of this project is to create a better quality of life in the Chicago area by reducing the number of bottlenecks at railroad crossings and improving the flow of vehicles.