CTA Yellow Line Train Service Resumes Nearly 2 Months After Crash

EVANSTON, IL — Just shy of two months after nearly 40 people were injured when a Yellow Line train collided with a snowplow near the Chicago Transit Authority’s Howard station, train service resumed for commuters early Friday morning.

Trains began running just before 5 a.m. on Friday after CTA officials announced on Thursday night that train service would resume following comprehensive analysis and testing. Train service was shut down since Nov. 16, when dozens of people were injured in the crash.

Since then, the CTA has worked with the National Transportation Safety Board and has provided “full cooperation” with federal officials during their investigation of the crash. In a news release on Thursday night, CTA officials said they have spent the past few weeks examining all aspects of Yellow Line operations — from signals to train operations and communications.

The CTA said it has run test trains along the line in various weather conditions, preparing for the eventual re-opening of train service.

“We extend our gratitude to our riders impacted by this incident and for their patience,” CTA President Dorval R. Carter, Jr. “My No. 1 priority for our customers and employees is safety. I wanted to make sure we looked at every aspect of this incident, as thoroughly as we could, to ensure the highest levels of safety when we reopened. I will never compromise safety for expediency.”

The CTA announced on Thursday that to support the reopening, it has introduced a series of interim safety enhancements, “out of an abundance of caution,” Carter said.

Among the measures:

• Yellow Line trains will run at reduced speeds of 35 mph, down from 55 mph.
• Crews also have power-washed the Yellow Line, clearing debris and residue from the rail.
• CTA also added an extra layer of communication and protection, implementing what’s known as “manual blocking” on the rails for non-transport vehicles, such as snowplows and other heavy construction equipment. This is an operational control protocol that requires railcars and non-transport equipment to move only after receiving a verbal command from CTA’s Control Center
• Supervisory personnel will accompany operators on the first few Yellow Line runs.

“The NTSB did not require CTA to implement these safety enhancements; these mitigation measures are being made out of an abundance of caution to further protect our employees and riders,” CTA Chief Safety and Security Officer Nancy-Ellen Zusman said in the news release.

Zusman added that the NTSB has not issued any safety directives to the CTA and that the NTSB has been informed of the interim steps the CTA is taking before the Yellow Line reopening.

According to the NTSB report, the operator of the train was aware the snow removal machine was on the tracks but did not know it was stopped about 370 north of a red signal indication.

The train was headed southbound at about 54 mph when it got the command to stop from the signal system.

At that point, the machine and the six CTA workers aboard it were about 2,150 ahead. The signal system at the site of the crash was set up to allow a stopping distance of 1,780 feet or less, according to the NTSB.

“We continue to work very closely with the NTSB in support of its investigation.”

The NTSB continues its investigation into this matter, including the factors that contributed to the incident. A final report is expected to be issued later this year, officials said.

READ MORE:

• Nearly 40 Injured In Train Crash, Derailment At Howard Street Station
• CTA Yellow Line Crash Probed By NTSB Investigators
• Passengers Hurt In CTA Yellow Line Crash Begin Filing Lawsuits
• No CTA Yellow Line Reopening Date More Than 2 Weeks After Crash