Two men suffered minor injuries when a Red Line train derailed near the Roosevelt station in the wee hours of Thursday morning. According to CBS 2, "The train jumped off the track following a track switch at the State Street station...one of the cars on the train rode up just a few inches to breach the top of station platform, and got hung up on top." The two men were transported to Northwestern Memorial Hospital in good condition. The derailment happened around 1:20 a.m. and service on the Red Line subway resumed around 6 a.m.; overnight, Red Line trains were diverted to the Loop. more ›

• Chicago had almost as many murders in 2009 as New York did.
• Two young boys were killed yesterday in a fire in suburban Lansing.
• The University of Illinois is preparing to institute unpaid furlough days in the wake of the state budget crunch.

Four workers have been suspended without pay for last weekend's Green Line derailment, including the lead car operator. According to ABC 7: "The CTA says the operator of the lead car in Saturday's derailment blew past a red stop signal. Her union says she simply wasn't familiar with the route. She was filling in for someone who was sick and had never worked it before." The Trib reports that the rear operator then "powered up the train and pulled it back in the other direction, apparently in a bid to fix the problem" but was unsuccessful. The rear operator was also suspended, as were a tower man and a supervisor but CTA officials wouldn't elaborate on those suspensions. more ›

This weekend's Green Line derailment that resulted in 14 people being hospitalized is now being blamed on "human error." An official with the CTA told CBS 2 that the "initial investigation does have many human errors." The operator of the train at the time of the derailment is reported to have over five years of experience. more ›

• Sen. Burris continues to be in the health care debate spotlight thanks to his stance on a public option. Well, sort of.
• The Sun-Times discovers commuting by bike.
• Clean-up continues of a major freight train derailment in the Glenview area.

Bad news for Metra commuters on the SouthWest Service line: a freight train derailment today will more than likely cause some delays tonight. No one was hurt in the derailment but fluids leaked from the train into the Chicago River, resulting in a hazmat response. Metra has already canceled some afternoon trains and it may take as long as 12 hours to completely clear the scene. more ›

• A man died in an area Dunkin Donuts in 2007 and now his mother is suing the franchisees for wrongful death.
• The search continues for toddler Jada Justice, missing since last week, but Indiana police claim they have no promising leads.
• WBEZ examines some of the possible fall out from putting caps on campaign contributions.

A blazing train derailment in Rockford, Ill. resulted in one death, power loss and the evacuation of hundreds of residents. The Chicago-bound freight train had 74 of its 114 cars filled with ethanol, according to the Associated Press. As of Saturday morning, five rail cars were still burning, with officials concerned other cars may catch fire. Cars on the train hydroplaned in standing water as it approached a railroad crossing, according to witness reports to the Rockford Register-Star. However a Canadian National Railway Company spokesman said claims the derailment was “caused by a washout of the tracks” were under investigation. more ›

After a week of derailments and secret agent delays, Metra hopes things get back to running smoothly tomorrow. Among the derailments was the North Central Line which runs between Antioch and Chicago which was shut when a Canadian National freight train derailed early Friday morning. Officials expect the line, which carries around 5,000 passengers daily, to be back to normal tomorrow. Be sure to check Metra's Service Updates just in case. more ›

What a bad week to ride Metra. After this week's problems involving a secret service agent and derailment, another derailment, this time by a freight train in Buffalo Grove has canceled morning service on Metra's North Central line between Chicago and Antioch. Of the 17 cars that derailed, two are packed with sulfur, a hazardous material, complicating matters. A CN spokesman said it was unlikely service would be restored today. There's no weekend service on the line, so it's likely officials will handle the currently derailed cars and then inspect the track for damage with hopes of getting things going again by Monday. No one was hurt in the derailment and no evacuations have been ordered. more ›

After yesterday's derailment that snarled train traffic at Union Station, Amtrak is dealing with another derailment, this time further down state. The train, Lincoln train No. 302 traveling from St. Louis to Chicago, was involved in an accident with a vehicle. The accident damaged the train and derailed it, but no injuries were reported onboard. Other trains on the route have been canceled and passengers will instead be transported by bus. more ›

Just in time for rush hour! An Amtrak train has derailed at Union Station, blocking three Metra routes: the BNSF to Aurora, the Heritage Corridor to Joliet, and the Southwest train to Manhattan. Damn, the BNSF is having a tough day. The blockage is bad enough it could force a closure of Union Station. Metra spokeswoman Judy Pardonnet said: "At this point in time we are waiting to hear from Amtrak the extent of the derailment, how long it will be for them to move that train and restore the switches. Right now nothing is coming in, nothing is going out and we are waiting to see how Amtrak proceeds with their investigation of thi. Right now nothing is going in. Nothing is going out." more ›

A CTA train derailment in the Howard Red Line rail yard temporarily interrupted Red Line service and has indefinitely shut down Yellow Line service. The #97 bus is offering service for Yellow Line riders until further notice. Southbound Red Line trains between Howard and Thorndale were temporarily suspended but service has since been restored and the CTA is saying to expect only minor delays on the Red and Purple Lines. The derailment occurred around 9 a.m. and there's no word what line the derailed train was associated with. Update: Service has been restored to the Yellow Line. more ›

On Friday, Metra announced the suspension of two engineers for allowing "unauthorized access to their locomotive cabs," according to the Chicago Tribune. The unauthorized person is believed to be the same teenager who illegally operated another Metra train, resulting in the resignation of a third engineer. Not exactly reassuring for suburban commuters, as this announcement follows recent news of an $11 million settlement in an unrelated Metra derailment incident, in which operator error was blamed. And if you're not yet convinced that teenagers shouldn't operate commercial transit vehicles, maybe this will change your tune. The positive spin? Kids, you can do anything if you put your mind to it! more ›

A settlement to the tune of $11 million has been reached in the deadly September 2005 Metra derailment that killed college student Jane Cuthbert and research technician Allison Walsh while also injuring 80 others. The settlement was approved by Cook County Judge Thomas Hogan and puts to rest a pair of wrongful death lawsuits brought about by the victims' families. The Joliet-to-Chicago train derailed when attempting to switch tracks at over 70 miles-per-hour. The engineer at the helm during the derailment was fired in 2006. more ›

Amtrak experienced a “very minor” derailment earlier this morning in the South Loop. [How one can have a ‘very minor’ derailment, we’re not sure; either you’re on the tracks or you’re not. Is it like a ‘minor flesh wound?] more ›

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"Sunrise-Sears" via bweb04. more ›

McDonald's new menu, especially the new fancy coffee, helped them make big money last year. The city is unveiling Olympic ads that will be displayed at O'Hare. Motorola is sending kids to China (not in a Jack Bauer kind of way). And their investors want new fancy toys. Mayor Daley isn't allowing the Park District to jack up parking prices for the Bears game. An E2 guard discussed the stampede in the club. The CTA... more ›

The CTA put out their 2006 ridership figures on Monday, showing a 0.5 percent increase from last year, and boosting figures to their highest level since 1993, according to CTA officials. Several things in this report were unexpected to us. First, that buses account for two-thirds of total CTA ridership. We would have never guessed, frankly. A lot of buses don’t run 24 hours, and after rush hour a lot of buses don’t seem... more ›

Chicagoist’s love-hate relationship with the CTA continues unabated, but even we feel sorry for Frank and Co. as it’s mostly bad news this week. NBC – 5 reported that more than five dozen CTA passengers affected by the Blue Line derailment last July filed lawsuits against the agency. The CTA is not admitting liability despite the accident occurring on its train, which was traveling over its tracks in its tunnel. We’ll be curious to see... more ›

An NTSB Safety Board investigator said on Friday that the track where the Blue Line train derailed was too wide. The track exceeded the standard rail-to-rail width at more than one point by up to 1 1/8 inches. It's kind of freaky to think that just over an inch of extra space will cause a train car to derail. more ›

While the CTA’s budget woes are well-known, the cries of poverty that occasionally emanate from its suburban counterpart often go unheard by those in the city limits. So Metra has to find creative ways to make ends meet like picking up some acting work. Various Metra trains and stations appear in the Jennifer Aniston/Clive Owen film Derailed, which comes out this weekend. more ›

Investigators say speed was the cause of the Metra train derailment this weekend.The train was going 69 miles/hour when it shouldn't have been going faster than 10 miles/hour. more ›

Not long ago Chicagoist was wondering outloud to a friend, "what would happen if the train we're on right now, that's travelling this fast, suddenly came to a stop?" That's what happened this morning when a Metra train en route from Joliet derailled. more ›