Fare evasion actually dropped in SF after they introduced all-door boarding. It wouldn't make sense on every route in the vast city of Chicago, but the most congested ones could certainly benefit.

CTA would have to hire fare inspectors, so it's not a zero-cost item. Easier to do with Ventra though... Either riders have a pass loaded or they have tagged in.

People will oppose anything, but I think the reduced danger from third rail and the reduced delays to motorists would be attractive to neighborhood residents.

I think they would end up doing a concrete viaduct like this one so that they could build it while maintaining active service below.

Saw the Cermak station last weekend. Hmmmm, not really a fan. The geometry of it looks to be like it will get very dirty very fast. Also, that retail structure next to it burned down.

According to some posters on chicagobus.org, the Cermak Green Line station is opening on Monday.

--

I was doing some thinking about what will happen with the Loop in the future recently. I came up with a few possible scenarios,

1. Build a new tunnel from Armitage to Chinatown for a combined Brown/Orange/Purple route. It could take the old proposed Franklin route, or perhaps the more recent Clinton proposal. A reduced option would run in subway from Chicago Ave to Harrison, then run elevated through the new S Loop development area and onto the Orange Line. The Green and Pink would be left on the loop.

2. Combine the Orange with the Red. Red Line trains would branch at Roosevelt and go to either 95th or Midway. This would reduce congestion on the loop.

3. Build Orange/Brown/Purple subway as above, Branch the Red at Roosevelt between the Dan Ryan and the South Side Main. Douglas trains would become part of the Blue Line again. Lake St would run from Michigan/Lake to Harlem, and potentially dismantle the Wells, Van Buren, and Wabash sides of the loop.

Considering the way CTA is run, I don't imagine any of these will happen, but I suppose that #1 would be the most elegant solution. Any thoughts on what should happen to loop operations?

Combining Orange and Red seems so sensible that I wonder why it hasn't already been done? Running a pattern of one Orange Line train for every two Dan Ryan branch trains onto the State Street Subway would approximately match the ridership of each of the branches, and would more closely match the frequency needed to run trains on the North Side line. Not all red line trains run down the Dan Ryan line, right?

This could be implemented with no construction at all if it used the existing 13th street incline. But that has a conflict at 17th junction where Green Line trains and Orange Line trains would have to cross each other through a flat junction. That means Orange Line trains would have to coordinate with both Green Line AND Red Line train schedules. If schedules are tight, then this might make it hard for Orange Line trains to make their slots onto the State Street Subway.

Therefore a better way would be to build a new connection from Orange to Red near Wentworth & 18th, which would be short, above ground, and therefore (hopefully) not too expensive. The connection onto the orange line could be a flat junction since orange line trains would no longer use the 18th street elevated in revenue service, but the connection onto the red line would have to be a flying junction.

New Cermak-McCormick Place Green Line Station Opens Monday
 

http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2015/02/...-opens-sunday/

Bob Roberts February 7, 2015 12:29 PM

(CBS) — Just in time for next weekend’s Chicago Auto Show, the CTA is opening its new Cermak-McCormick Place Green Line station.

The station, at 13 E. Cermak Rd., will be impossible to miss, thanks to the distinctive tube-shaped canopy that encloses the platform. CTA spokesman Brian Steele said there has been no station on the Green Line between Roosevelt and the 35th/IIT-Bronzeville station since the 1970s......

^ I think they had a soft opening already, I went by today and saw it was open. Took some photos - this station is huge and has a massive passenger capacity, it could handle as many pax as Clark/Lake possibly with three exits and two elevators. The tube element is cool and provided a nice shelter from the rain/wind. I love the suspended signage and lighting element that keeps the platform clear of obstructions.

The "auxiliary" exit to 23rd St is enormous and has its own attendant, but it is poorly marked inside the station.

Cermak/McCormick Place Station [Green]

http://i57.tinypic.com/dzghza.jpg

http://i58.tinypic.com/keu4xy.jpg

I have never understood why more of CTAs stations aren't covered. oh well...i like the looks of this one.

The best part of the Cermak station is the new bench seating:

http://www.trbimg.com/img-54d7d7c4/t.../1150/1150x647
Chicago Tribune:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/l...togallery.html

For $50 million, the seats should be heated. Maybe fine Corinthian leather. And give you a massage.

Seriously. Is it really too much to ask for a canopy that at least extends the length of the platform? The Brown Line is a joke in this department.

Point taken, but given the size of the facility, the engineering challenges, complex construction techniques, difficult staging, and expensive materials, I have no problem understanding how CTA managed to spend $50M.

Amen. It should really be standard especially on the stations along the expressways. Cutting down on the noise and exhaust pollution while also cutting down on the wind chill should be a minimum expectation.

I would put this as perhaps priority number before any line expansions.

Metra set to debut app this spring
 

http://www.dailyherald.com/article/2...ews/150219275/

Marni Pyke 2/14/2015 7:31 AM


Metra is seeking volunteers to test a new mobile ticketing app for smartphones that will allow commuters to purchase and display tickets on their screens.

Interested riders can check the agency's website at metrarail.com/metra/en/home.html for details in the coming weeks, officials said.......

Three new infill stations have started operations within the past 3 years (Oakton-Skokie, Morgan, and now Cermak-McCormick Place). I know there has been some talk about infill stations on the brown line at Division, perhaps on the pink (or green?) line near the United Center, and on the yellow line somewhere in south Evanston, but there aren't any additional infill stations expected within the next couple of years, right?

The next station project in the queue is Washington/Wabash, to consolidate Madison/Wabash and Randolph/Wabash. This should start in the spring.

Also major replacements at Wilson and 95th, both of which are already underway.

One thing to note: CTA is not planning an infill station at the United Center, but CDOT is about to launch a big streetscaping project on Damen to better connect the UC to the existing Medical Center station on the Blue Line. This will widen sidewalks, with shortened crossing distances, crosswalk refuge islands, decorative streetscaping, etc. The Medical Center station will also get a medium-cost renovation in 2015.

Like I've said before, I just love how the disconnect between Transit Agency Planning allows them to move the station a block further away from Millennium station. The 2 block distance between Clinton Blue Line and CUS was not so much intentional as dictated by the location of the subway.

CTA is DESIGNING IN an additional weather-exposed block and a half walk for those transferring between those facilities; another reason for Agency consolidation??

I think having one less station for every train to stop at in the loop is more of an advantage than people walking another block.

VERY true, but they could have placed and staged it with the north end at Randolph in instead of Washington, so it could have had an enclosed ADA Compliant connection to the Pedway (and Millennium, Red Line, Blue Line, stores, etc., etc.....). To do that now would require a block long walkway alongside the tracks.

Obama Pullman National Park event on Thursday
 

It is going to be quite interesting to see how Public Transportation works for this event on Thursday, there will be thousands attending. Red Line to 95th, and then various buses. The MED is semi-useless because of it's scheduling format, and fare disconnect from CTA.

So the new Pullman National Park will gets it's first big test for visitor and tourist access on Thursday.