Lawsuits, Breakdowns, Reroutes and Closures: Yet Another CTA Post

By Scott Smith in News on Oct 19, 2006 6:19PM

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 who gets the blame for this morning’s Red Line problems.

This weekend’s Chicago Marathon is going to have traffic snarled all over the place. In such cases, the CTA’s your recommended go-to transport option. But keep in mind, many bus routes will be affected by people who are way healthier than you.

Also this weekend, a Brown Line shuttle train will run on a single track between the Western and Kedzie stops to accommodate closures due to construction. And the Blue Line will run on a single track between Pulaski and Western on Friday and Saturday night, which increases your chances of passing out on the way home from the bars, so stay alert!

Finally, don’t forget that the Washington stop on the Red Line closes bright and early at 12:01 AM Monday morning. No transfers to and from the Blue Line will be allowed, and customers are encouraged to use either adjacent stop. And by "encouraged to" we mean “SOL unless they….” The stop will be closed until Fall of 2008.

But it’s not all bad news: the haunted El train is back! And there’s a new CTA vending machine at the LaSalle Metra station. Plus, weekend and midday service for the Irving Park express bus and combined service for the #11 Lincoln and #37 Sedwick. Actually, we’re still trying to figure out the new route for the last one so that might be good news/bad news.