CHICAGO (AP) – The city of Chicago is setting aside $5 million to eliminate slow zones on especially busy bus lines.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s office announced the funding Sunday as part of the 2019 proposed budget.
One focus will be addressing traffic bottlenecks at certain intersections, including by installing designated bus lanes in some cases. New pavement markings and signage will also be involved.
In a statement from his office, Emanuel said “these improvements will help make Chicago the first city to look at a citywide plan specifically around buses.”
Among the bus lines slated for the initial improvements is the No. 79 bus line, which tallied 7.8 million rides in 2017. The upgrades will be rolled out starting in the spring.
