Freezing Rain, Ice Cause Many Delays On South Shore, Metra Trains
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The freezing rain, ice accumulation and falling temperatures have caused many Metra lines to experience delays on Thursday.
South Shore trains were delayed, and service was eventually suspended, Thursday morning due to ice on the overhead wire. Officials said Metra will honor South Shore tickets. However, that was of no consolation to riders who were already stuck on trains unable to travel eastbound into the city.
Chicago bound South Shore commuters were being sent back to their originating stations after spending hours on their train.
"Due to extreme weather conditions that have not improved South Shore Line Service is temporally suspended until further notice. We anticipate resuming service later today as weather improves. All trains will now return east to discharge passengers to their originating stations. South Shore regrets having to take this action, but weather conditions did not permit us to provide a reasonable level of service," South Shore Line said in a statement.
Metra's train tracking system was down Thursday morning for all lines. It was restored before 9 a.m. Metra told passengers to refer to alerts for major delays due to weather conditions.
Metra's platform PA announcement system experienced communication issues due to the weather. Metra said they are working to investigate the problem and correct any communication issues at this time. Metra advised riders to use the website for more information on delays.
Metra's Electric District's inbound and outbound trains are operating with extensive delays due to weather related conditions. The delays on this line are averaging anywhere between 20-70 minutes.
Metra's Rock Island's inbound and outbound trains are operating with delays approximately 15 to 25 minutes late due to earlier mechanical issues on a train from Joliet and inclement weather conditions.
Metra's UPN line train #332 is delayed 15-30 minutes due to switch problems.
And the #319 Metra UPN train has a 30-35-minute delay for earlier switch problems.
Metra's MDN and MDW lines were experiencing delays Wednesday night into Thursday morning with dispatch problems. Delays ranged between 10-45 minutes.
Metra said they apologize for the inconvenience. They are hoping to correct all problems and have all line running later Thursday once the weather improves.
