Chicagoist: CTA To Close Washington Red Line Stop for Two Years

el evated

Thu, 12 Oct 2006 23:14:27 -0600

geekgrrl - I can't claim to have Tony's breadth of knowledge, but I can answer your question. The issue is the length of the platforms on the Purple Line. Like the Brown Line, the Purple Line platforms aren't long enough to accommodate 8-car trains.

geekgrrl

Thu, 12 Oct 2006 19:22:42 -0600

hey Tony, off-topic question for you.. any idea why the purple line only runs six cars? i take it whenever possible coming home, and the thing's always jam packed by the time it gets to washington & wells. seems like it would make so much more sense to run eight cars, especially with its sporadic timetable.

Jerry

Thu, 12 Oct 2006 17:41:51 -0600

Fire Kruesi!!!!!!!!!!!!!

NSH

Thu, 12 Oct 2006 15:44:29 -0600

Thanks Tony for wrecking my comment with your "sensible" response. Sheesh!

Tony Coppoletta

Thu, 12 Oct 2006 15:20:07 -0600

Just a note to NSH: First, CTA needs to buy new cars regardless of any benefit to a seating rearrangement. The entire 2200-series (the ones with the "blinker" doors that swing open) has been in service something like ten years beyond their design-life. The things are way past their life expectancy--it's just a good thing CTA knows how to design and maintain a rail fleet (although, as one would expect on the 2200s, they are increasingly problematic and do need to be phased out). The 2400s, which are used on Green and Purple, are also in need of replacement and require a lot of maintenance to keep them running due to their age. CTA used to be able to buy new rolling stock every few years, but it just doesn't work that way anymore. Second, arranging the seats longitudinally isn't just as simple as moving them around. As I understand it, underneath the solid flooring we walk on in the car, there's some sort of metal support grid for the seats to be bolted onto. Move the seats anywhere else, and they're not going to be very securely fastened because the grid is only where it needs to be. So, if what I've heard is correct, the only way to do it on existing cars would be to tear the entire floor out of the body of each car and completely reconstruct it. It just makes more sense for CTA to wait until the next batch is in.

ross

Thu, 12 Oct 2006 15:06:11 -0600

What kills me is at the North/Clybourn station they have exposed wires with lightbulbs strung up on the ceiling. Any where else this would be a code violation even if it is temporary.

Mr. Smith

Thu, 12 Oct 2006 12:28:51 -0600

Also, via Beachwood Reporter, a letter in the Sun-Times that addresses the many problems with the CTA as of late.

Casio Nova

Thu, 12 Oct 2006 12:01:29 -0600

WTF - It doesn't take TWO YEARS to install lightbulbs - the one item the Washington stop is lacking. But, well, when they get it lit up it's just going to expose the filthy walls, floors, ceiling, etc. I'd love for the EPA to do some tests down there, I'm sure there's enough bad things down there to make us wear face masks just like they do in Japan WHERE IT'S 100X CLEANER THAN HERE. Anyone remember those advertisements for a local hospital that said something like "Enjoy your health, another train will be along soon?" What was the exact phrase? It was always hilarious to me considering I was standing underground trying not to breath and ingest the air down there.

Mr. Smith

Thu, 12 Oct 2006 11:57:02 -0600

From the release: "Construction to modify the State Street subway platform for connecting tunnels and tracks that will link the Red and Blue Line subways and connect them to the planned rapid transit station at 108 N. State Street..." Nothing in there about rehabbing the station itself. You'd assume that they'd remodel it while doing all this work but you know what happens when you assume...

Mike

Thu, 12 Oct 2006 11:50:45 -0600

2 years...jesus christ. when it's done, it better look like the Lake Street stop at the very least.

NSH

Thu, 12 Oct 2006 11:41:42 -0600

Yeah sidecars... What they can't take the seats out of the cars they already have now and rearange them? They have to buy new ones? Load of crap.

Joel

Thu, 12 Oct 2006 11:32:29 -0600

I can't wait for the sidecars, the configuration as it stands is way too clunky and space-consuming.

bob

Thu, 12 Oct 2006 11:18:10 -0600

Wait, it takes them something like three years to move on the brown line renovation even after they've gotten the funding, but this thing (properly mentioned as something not only nobody asked for, nobody even wants it) hits the ground running. I seems to me that Kruesi would prefer it if nobody used the CTA (except maybe a few tourists going around the loop like some sort of amusement ride) as that would make his job a whole lot easier.