CTA Red Line service impacted at Addison station through March

CHICAGO (WLS) -- CTA Red Line trains will not stop at Addison this weekend as work to replace worn track components begins Friday night.

The Addison Street station will close the weekend of March 8 and March 29, with no trains stopping there. There'll be shuttle buses for riders to the next station. From March 10 to March 30, there will only be southbound train service at the stop.

City transit officials say the construction comes ahead of the start of its massive, multi-million dollar Red and Purple Line modernization project.

"It is prepping us for one of the biggest projects in CTA history " said Tammy Chase, of the Chicago Transit Authority.

Phase one of the project includes the construction of four new stations at Lawrence, Argyle, Berwyn, and Bryn Mawr on the Red Line, along with the completion of a Red-Purple bypass. The bypass will be a flyover north of Belmont where the Red, Brown and Purple Line trains intersect, meant to alleviate overcrowding and delays.

Plans also include a new rail system between Howard and Belmont to improve train flow and service reliability.