Feds’ halt of funding for CTA Red Line Extension project was ‘impermissible’: Judge

A district court judge has issued a temporary restraining order demanding the restoration of federal funding for the CTA Red Line Extension project.

That ruling from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District granted the CTA a TRO after the agency filed the suit last week. The court ruled the suspension of federal funding for that project and a modernization project on the Red and Purple lines on the North Side was “impermissible,” according to the court.

“Today, the CTA secured a major victory for the Red Line Extension and the residents of Chicago’s Far South Side. CTA promised the community that it would fight for RLE, and this ruling is a massive step toward restoration of funding for this historic project. RLE will provide transit access and opportunity for generations to come, and we are fully committed to seeing it move forward,” said CTA Acting President Nora Leerhsen.

The order requires payments to resume by Friday at 10 a.m., barring a stay on the TRO, according to the CTA.

“Today we celebrate yet another victory in the fight to protect federal dollars promised to Chicagoans from being withheld and used to advance Trump’s campaign of retribution. While we are encouraged by this ruling, I am redoubling my commitment to protect Chicago from this president’s reckless abuse of power and attacks on our city,” Mayor Brandon Johnson said in a statement.

The lawsuit filed by the CTA alleged the administration acted arbitrarily in halting transit construction money for the city in an effort to restrict race- and gender-based contracting, which it believes is unconstitutional. It names the U.S. Department of Transportation and the Federal Transportation Authority as defendants.

The 5.3-mile extension of the Red Line would take that line from its current termination point at 95th Street to 130th Street. The CTA is also planning a massive new railyard in conjunction with the project.

The pause on funding also impacted a modernization project on the North Side, affecting construction on the Red and Purple lines.

The Transportation Department said in an email that it will continue to fight “discriminatory, illegal, and wasteful contracting practices.”

“The American people don’t care what race or gender construction workers, pipefitters, or electricians are,” the department said. “They just want these important projects built quickly and efficiently.”

*Note: This story features previous reporting by the Associated Press