CTA Extends 35th Street Route To 31st Street

By Chuck Sudo in News on Aug 9, 2012 2:10PM

Chuck Sudo/Chicagoist

The Chicago Transit Board on Wednesday approved what they’re calling an “experimental service enhancement” to the #35 35th Street Bus Route that should come as somewhat welcome news for residents advocating for the restoration of a bus route on 31st Street.

The 35th Street route will be extended along 31st Street from Kedzie to Cicero beginning in the fall for a 180-day probationary period. CTA cited increased ridership demand along that corridor for the experiment.

CTA President Forrest Claypool said in a statement:

This extension of service not only addresses a need for east/west public transit service in the area, it also strengthens the connection to an existing transportation network that serves the Chicagoland region through the combination of CTA, Pace and Metra services. Experimental service enhancements such as this serve as a stepping stone in identifying the best plans to improve our existing system while maintaining operational efficiency.

I wrote about efforts by community groups in Little Village, McKinley Park, Bridgeport and Bronzeville who organized a bicycle caravan that rode along the old 31st Street bus route last week. Extending the 35th Street route so that the customers it will serve have better access to the Red, Green and Orange lines; other CTA or Pace bus routes and Metra’s Cicero station on the Burlington Northern Sante Fe line. The announcement by the Transit Board is a good first step, but these advocates said at last night’s meeting it isn’t enough. Paul Zickas, a disabled Vietnam War veteran from Bridgeport, said he currently has to take three buses and travel 3-1/2 blocks by himself in a motorized wheelchair to make medical appointments at the Jesse Brown VA Medical Center and having a 31st Street bus would make that trip easier.

CTA will use a $1 million federal grant to fund the pilot program, which is estimated to cost $600,000. The 35th Street bus, which currently has 5,500 passengers a day, will pick up an additional 600 riders.