'L' Trains Running Normal After Tuesday Rush Hour Derailment

By Chuck Sudo in News on Jun 18, 2014 1:45PM

CTA "L" service is back to normal Wednesday morning after an Orange Line derailed during the Tuesday rush hour and sent metal and wood from the tracks onto the street below.

The derailment occurred around 6:45 p.m. when one of the Orange Line cars slipped off the track serving the Van Buren Street side of the Orange, Pink and Purple Lines. Witnesses said they heard a loud screeching then saw the debris. Several dozen steel rail fasteners, which slide into brackets that hold the tracks in place, were destroyed. CTA spokesman Brian Steele told the Tribune it's likely the fasteners were "surplus from recent work" and regularly stored on platforms, away from trains.

All elevated train service in the Loop was halted for an hour while crews cleaned up the damage and repairs began. Inbound Pink Line trains ran as far as Ashland while Orange Line trains navigated the Loop on the outer tracks. Repairs were finished around 1:30 a.m.