ORD Blue Line Update
 

Saw this news story online.. while some stuff is generic other parts (like the even faster speed limit) are interesting...

http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?sec...nts&id=5814734

I just took the Blue Line yesterday back from ORD to Chicago/Milwaukee. For a Sunday, not bad - about 15-20 minute delay with the shuttle bus transfer from Harlem to Jeff Park. But, add the normal slow zones and I think the word of the day is patience.

Yeah, that's the first I'd heard that the Blue Line could be going 65-70 mph when the project is done. That's pretty impressive for urban transit, though I'd imagine there will be only a few stretches where it will get that fast, considering the ferquent stops. The real shame is that there will still be no express service between ORD and the Loop.

For those of you who are detail wonks, the CTA slow zone maps are posted at http://www.transitchicago.com/news/w...ticleid=107056

While the 65-70 will be interrupted by stops, the fastest segment will the the one most important to FTers, the now glacial segment from Jeff Park to O'Hare, with only three stops and a lot of straightaways. I say most important, because those inbound waits while your check-in or baggage check deadline nears (or passes) are the most agonizing.

But if it can get it Clark to ORD down to the original 35-40 min travel time, that'll feel like an express...

I rode the blue line last week and it seemed to be going pretty fast down the sections where it parallels 90.

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry8100/4.2.0 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/100)

On my ride out this morning (on the tarmac) the section between Jeff and Harlem seemed... fast and smooth. Sure, we were back to the usual bumps and creaks soon thereafter, but it was lovely while it lasted.

Are they still shutteling people? Gonna be landing on the 30th (not soon enough :mad:) and was just wondering so I might be able to do an eta at the hotel.

They only shut down and run shuttles on weekends. Sometimes overnight they run single track in certain areas. Take a look at:
http://yourcta.com/news/whatsnewA.wu
a day or two before your trip and it should have details. If you're coming in during the day, you have nothing to worry about.

Just took the blue line from downtowon (Washington) to O'Hare - 3.45 Sunday afternoon - straight through took 40 minutes so no shuttling :)

If I take the blue line from ORD what stop would put me closest to the Essex Inn?

I would say take it to Jackson then free transfer to the red line to Harrison. If not just take a cab from the Jackson stop

New CTA cars coming in 2011. (Artist conception makes it look a little like what the BART cars must have looked like when they were clean.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/l...i_tab01_layout
http://www.suntimes.com/news/transpo...012308.article

Of more immediate FT interest in the Trib item:

The new trains will reach speeds of up to 70 m.p.h., up from the current CTA limit of 55 m.p.h. But the actual running time is often much slower due to slow zones put in place to maintain safety over rickety tracks.

Currently, slow zones affect about 17 percent of CTA track, down from 22 percent last October.

Track and railroad tie repairs are scheduled for completion by year's end on the Blue Line between the Addison Street stop and O'Hare International Airport....

Interesting the concept drawing shows a Forest Park destination. I wonder what line the CTA will put these new trains on. The concepts of the interiors don't look at all like CTA trains. It would feel so wierd riding in one of those in Chicago I think.

I like this quote from the Sun Times:

The new rail cars will make the CTA "the most modern system in the United States," Huberman said.

Um, while the new cars may indeed be very modern, its going to take a lot more than that to make the CTA the most modern system in the US, given the bad track, outmoded signal system, decrepit stations, general state of filthiness, etc. A step in the right direction, certainly.

These will replace, at first, the 2200 series -- the ones on the Blue Line with the folding doors, and the only non-accessible cars in the fleet. The next to be replaced are the 2400 series, used on the Green and Purple lines -- these have a set of two "racing stripes" at about shin height, but otherwise look a lot like the 2600s that are the Red Line's mainstays. The Brown, Orange, and Yellow lines currently run the newest trains, which are ~15 years old.

Some trains in Tokyo have displays giving the train's location on the line, which alternate with general announcements and sometimes advertisements. I thought it was a nice touch.

The Kennedy segment track reconstruction work and hence the bus shuttles are on hold during the winter. There's some more basic maintenance underway in the Milwaukee subway section again, which is requiring overnight (into early morning) single-track operations.