Metra to Receive $104 Million in CMAQ Grants

Metra, in Chicago, is to receive more than $104 million in grants through Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning’s (CMAP’s) Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement (CMAQ) program.

The funding was approved as part of CMAP’s 2026-2030 regional CMAQ program and includes $80 million for the renovation of the historic Van Buren Street Station on the Metra Electric Line, $23.7 million for the purchase of three electric-powered switch locomotives, and $800,000 for improvements to the Edgebrook Station on the Milwaukee District North Line.

“We’re grateful CMAP has seen the value of these projects to the region and included funding them in the 2026-2030 CMAP program,” said Metra Executive Director/CEO Jim Derwinski. “Each of these three projects will help us address the goals of the CMAQ program to reduce congestion and pollution levels by improving and strengthening the sustainability of our transit system.”

“The funding announced today will help improve safety and efficiency for Metra passengers while also reducing diesel emissions,” said Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL). “These CMAQ program investments will support key projects, including the Van Buren Street Station renovation, for which I helped secure nearly $24.5 million in federal funding earlier this year.”

The Van Buren Street Station project will be funded through the $80 million CMAQ grant, $10 million in federal Urbanized Area Formula Funding (Section 5307), and $24.5 million from USDOT’s Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) program. Metra will also provide $20 million in local matching funds. Construction is expected to begin in late 2028.

“Whether it be for work or fun, Chicagoans and visitors use the historic Van Buren Street Station every day. This CMAP funding allows the station to begin modernizing and continue supporting Metra’s transition to electric rail, giving passengers a reliable, safe, and ecofriendly transportation option,” said Rep. Mike Quigley, senior member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies (THUD). “I’m also thrilled a portion of this funding will be used to support improvements to Metra’s Edgebrook Station, which will be paired with the $1.2 million I secured for the station last year.”

The 129-year-old Van Buren Street Metra Station is located below street level on the east side of Michigan Avenue adjacent to Grant Park. Decades of water infiltration has damaged the facility’s pedestrian tunnels and waiting area, requiring a complete rehabilitation. While maintaining the station’s historic character, the project will provide waterproofing, enclosed platform warming shelters, digital signage, and a modern green roof system. The plans also include two new elevators on the east side of Michigan Avenue improving ADA accessibility.

A $23.2 million CMAQ award will fund the purchase of up to three battery-electric switch locomotives to replace switch locomotives used in yard and maintenance of way operations. They will replace some of Metra’s oldest, most-polluting locomotives. The purchase, which will comply with the federal Build America Buy America Act, will serve as a pilot project to test battery-electric technology for railroad locomotives. Metra will also provide $5.8 million as the local match for the project.

Metra will also receive an $800,000 CMAQ grant for improvements to the Edgebrook Station on the Milwaukee District North Line. Combined with a $1.2 million grant secured by Rep. Quigley, the project will improve the inbound platform and platform entrances, add a new fully enclosed warming shelter mid-platform, expand the inbound platform’s existing shelter, and add ADA-compliant curb ramps and bicycle parking. The project is also being funded by $100,000 in RTA funds and another $100,000 in Metra PAYGO funds.