Signal Work To Reroute Loop 'L' Trains
CHICAGO (STMW) - CTA riders on the Brown, Orange and Green lines may experience delays in the Loop this weekend, as upgrades continue on the nearly 30-year-old signal system that regulates trains.
The lines will be rerouted from 4 a.m. Saturday through about 8 p.m. Sunday as a new signal control facility is installed at Van Buren and Wabash, according to a release from the CTA.
The new system will regulate train movement, train speed and intervals between trains more effectively, and reduce signal clearance delays now experienced when entering or leaving the Loop.
During construction, southbound Brown Line trains entering the Loop will operate clockwise around the Loop, according to the release. From the Merchandise Mart, southbound Brown Line trains will make their first stop at Clark/Lake, then State/Lake, Randolph/Wabash, Madison/Wabash, Adams/Wabash, Harold Washington Library, LaSalle/Van Buren, Quincy and Washington/Wells then proceed to the Merchandise Mart, where they will resume normal northbound service to Kimball.
Northbound Orange Line trains entering the Loop will operate counter-clockwise around the Loop, the release said. From Roosevelt, northbound Orange Line trains will make their first stop at Adams/Wabash then Madison/Wabash, Randolph/Wabash, State/Lake, Clark/Lake, Washington/Wells, Quincy, LaSalle/Van Buren and Harold Washington Library then proceed to Roosevelt and resume normal southbound service to Midway.
Southbound Green Line trains will be rerouted to the track along Wells and Van Buren, the release said. Southbound Green Line trains will make their first stop at Washington/Wells, then Quincy/Wells, LaSalle/Van Buren and Harold Washington Library, then proceed to Roosevelt where they will resume normal southbound service.
Southbound Green Line customers who wish to reach Loop stations should transfer to a Pink Line train at Clinton. Customers who wish to board a southbound Green Line train in the Loop should board at their regular station and take a Pink or Brown Line train to the Harold Washington Library station to transfer to the Green Line on the opposite platform.
All Pink Line and northbound Green Line trains will operate on their regular routes in the Loop, the release said.
The project is expected to wrap up in late 2010, according to the release. Riders are advised to allow extra travel time.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2010. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
