It's no secret the Red line needs a lot of work beyond the improvements to the Belmont and Fullerton stations. Track repair and modernizing stations for wheelchair access is slated to cost CTA $4.2 billion. In their efforts to modernize the century-old, nearly 10-mile stretch of the Red and Purple Line routes that run from Belmont to Linden in Evanston, CTA is proposing to close five stops on that stretch: Lawrence, Foster, Thorndale, Jarvis and South Boulevard in Evanston. Maybe some of the money saved in closing those stations can go to more frequent bleachings of the perpetually piss-soaked Wilson station. more ›

Northbound service on the CTA's Evanston Purple line was halted briefly this morning when a small track fire broke out near the Main Street station. the fire broke out at 7:15 a.m. and was put out by Evanston firefighters by 7:40. CTA had shuttle buses running north from the Howard station in Chicago to the end of the Purple Line at Linden. more ›

Just in time for rush hour on a Friday! It seems some equipment malfunctions have caused the shut down of the Brown and Purple lines at Merchandise Mart, causing major delays. We're not sure what's up but several readers have reported several fire trucks at the Merch Mart location. According to Chicago Breaking News, shuttle buses are transporting passengers between Clark/Lake and Armitage. Adjust your Friday afternoon escape plan accordingly. 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 ›

Things should be flowing again on the north side. All four tracks of the Red, Purple and Brown Line routes are now open as of today at Belmont. Fullerton returned to four-track service last month. more ›

Hotcha! The CTA says it's going to finish construction at the Belmont and Fullerton el stops by the end of 2008, six months earlier than expected. How will they accomplish such a feat? By uh...working faster. more ›

There are a lot of ways to make money playing poker on the World Poker Tour circuit. To do it successfully, you have to consistently play good poker. Occasionally, you can get a string of good luck, and sometimes you can get away with being aggressive and the master of the bluff. Poker personality Mike "The Mouth" Matusow and recent 2006 World Series of Poker Champion Jamie Gold are two prime examples of people who have mastered the latter. They are also two examples of people who can easily go on tilt at the poker table and can blow a huge stack of chips in a short amount of time. more ›

While we won't get into Chicago's homeless situation, we have to believe the city's vagrants are 97% responsible for the tantalizing aroma of urine that permeates our street corners and mass transit system (the other 3% is made up of drunk bar patrons). While we try to look away, we can't help but be smacked in the face by that indefinable musky pungency that carries in the cool morning air. Since apparently everyone is... more ›

It's all in the timing. Chicagoist stayed a little later at work yesterday to get some exercise time in (believe it!), so we ended up taking the Purple Line home at around 6:45 p.m. As we traveled through the Loop, the conductor informed us that we wouldn't be stopping at Adams & Wabash. When we got there, it was easy to see why. Fire trucks galore were piled up back to the Art Institute. A CTA operative on the platform was quite insistent that the station was closed "by order of the fire department." Intrigue, she wrote! We hoped this didn't mean the station itself was on fire, or that it would be closed for a long amount of time. Per usual, information on the scene was very scanty. more ›

The Tribune ran a list of "Ten Things You Might Not Know About Chicago Transit." more ›

Really, we don't mind. We want to post a "CTA Hell" wrap-up on Friday. But is it? Was it? Tell us. How has your experience been? Do you take the Brown Line? Red Line? Purple Line? Have you tried one of the buses as an alternative? We've seen extra CTA employees and traffic management peeps in bright yellow neon vests doing various vague jobs, but how this all pans out for the long term remains to be seen. more ›

This news came in just in time for your commute home, Evanstonians & Skokites. more ›

We aren't. We thought it was pretty cool when we got on the Milwaukee bus for the first time ever and walked onto a holiday* wonderland of music, lights and decorations galore. We knew there was a holiday train that the CTA pimped out and sent around to different lines throughout the holiday season, but we had no idea that there were holiday buses. more ›

Chicagoist loves riding the train when we’re not biking, blogging, or … drinking beer. We were planning a leisurely trip to Evanston this weekend to see some sites, maybe catch a movie. Those plans are going to have to change, however; the Purple Line is going to be closed this weekend. Fortunately there will be buses stopping at every stop along the line from 7:30 p.m. on Friday until 1:30 a.m. on Monday, but we were really looking forward to the El experience. more ›

Organizers for the Nova Art Fair 2006 know you’ve gotta have a gimmick to get our attention. They have a few actually: transforming 40 rooms in the City Suites Hotel into mini art galleries, putting a fashion show on an el train, enlisting more than a dozen local businesses for an art walk showcase, and throwing all-night parties. Nova’s scope is broad, their minds are open, and any curiosity seems fair game. We can’t describe... more ›

Early this morning a work train derailed on the Red Line at the Belmont stop which is causing Red, Brown, and Purple line delays and shutdowns for the Monday morning commute. Buses have been put in place to shuttle people between the Red Line stops at Addison and Fullerton and the Brown Line stops at Southport and Fullerton. The Purple Line isn't running express. more ›

Kevin O'Neil, CTA Tattler more ›

A study released today found that the CTA serves rich people better and more frequently than it serves poor people. File under: no one is surprised. See also: schools, TIFs, libraries, roads, waste management, police presence, government in general. more ›