06/15/06
Today CTA Officials announced service enhancements set to start Sunday on 13 bus routes serving customers on the West Side and in the near west suburbs. The service changes were developed as a result of the West Side/West Suburban Corridor Study. CTA analyzed existing service in the corridor, residential and employment patterns, and development in the area in an ongoing effort to seek out and support opportunities to improve service.
A total of five new bus routes are being introduced, three express routes and two local routes:
- #X9 Ashland Express
- #X20 Madison/Washington Express
- #38 Ogden/Taylor
- #X54 Cicero Express
- #127 Roosevelt/Madison Circulator (replaces the current #127 NW/Madison route)
In addition, four existing bus routes are being extended, and routing and schedule improvements are being made for four other bus routes:
- #7 Harrison
- #21 Cermak (incorporates the #25 West Cermak)
- #37 Sedgwick
- #52 Kedzie/California
- #52A South Kedzie
- #86 Narragansett/Ridgeland
- #90 Harlem
- #91 Austin
The service enhancements are being introduced on an experimental basis and the performance of these routes will be evaluated over the next six months.
?These improvements reflect the growth in these thriving communities and will allow people to get to their jobs, recreation and schools faster and more conveniently," said Chicago Transit Board Chairman Carole Brown. ?The service enhancements will provide additional transit options and are designed to provide more service, better connections between CTA bus and rail service, or faster trips."
?CTA has worked hard over time to use the resources available to design service that is focused on customer needs. The new express bus routes included in these improvements, for example, provide customers with faster trips because of the limited stops," said CTA President Frank Kruesi. ?As a result of our efforts, CTA ridership has increased in seven of the past eight years and through this substantial investment in additional transit service for the West Side and western suburbs, we expect to see ridership continue to grow."
New Bus Routes
#X9 Ashland Express (Express Service ? weekdays only)The new express service improves north-south connections to the Illinois Medical District and to the CTA's Blue, Green, Orange, Pink and Red (Sheridan station) Lines. In addition, the Paulina station is one block west of Ashland on the Brown Line.
#X20 Madison/Washington Express (Express Service ? weekdays only)
The route provides service from Austin to downtown with fewer stops along Madison, Warren, Washington and Randolph. Eastbound the #X20 travels from Austin to Central Park on Madison, and from Central Park to Michigan on Warren and Washington. Westbound to Austin the #X20 travels from Michigan Avenue on Madison, Jefferson, Randolph, Ogden, Washington, Central Park and back to Madison. By operating on Madison west of Central Park the #X20 will reduce wait times by providing customers at major intersections a choice between express or local service on the existing #20 Madison.
#38 Ogden/Taylor (Local Service ? weekdays only)
The #38 operates from the Pulaski Pink Line station and provides direct service to CTA's Polk Pink Line station and the Clinton Green/Pink Line station. The route also connects to Metra's Ogilvie and Union stations downtown, the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) campus along Taylor Street, the Illinois Medical District and the West Side. This new route provides service west of downtown previously provided by the #37 Sedgwick/Ogden.
#X54 Cicero Express (Express Service ? weekdays only)
This #X54 travels from the Jefferson Park station and bus terminal on the O'Hare branch of the Blue Line to the Midway station on the Orange Line, making connections at the Cicero stations on the Green Line, Forest Park branch of the Blue Line and Pink Line.
#127 Roosevelt/Madison Circulator (Local Service ? weekdays/rush only)
The #127 provides a link to the Roosevelt stations on the elevated Orange and Green Lines, and the State Street Red Line subway, as well as the Illinois Medical District station on the Forest Park branch of the Blue Line, and connects to all of CTA's downtown rail lines (Red, Pink, Blue, Orange, Brown and Green). The route also connects to Metra's Ogilvie, Union, Roosevelt and Van Buren stations. The #127 is designed to supplement existing service on the #20 Madison and the #12 Roosevelt bus routes. This route replaces the current #127 NW/Madison route.
Routing and Schedule Improvements
#7 Harrison
The #7 Harrison now connects to the Polk Street station on the Pink Line at all times of operation. It continues service to the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), Greyhound bus terminal, Union Station, the Main Post Office and Domestic Violence Court.
#21 Cermak
This route provides direct service to the North Riverside Park Mall every day, combining the #21 Cermak and #25 West Cermak service into one route.
#37 Sedgwick
The #37 now has a new south terminal at Congress and Wells, and improves operations and service reliability by operating the north and south portion of the existing #37 Sedgwick/Ogden independently. Service previously provided by the
#37 Sedgwick/Ogden west of downtown is now provided by the new #38 Ogden/Taylor route.
#52 Kedzie/California
A change to the #52 route improves the efficiency of both the #52 Kedzie/California and #52A South Kedzie. Service on the #52 is extended to 63rd Place at all times of service. The adjusted route eliminates the need to transfer for customers traveling south to 63rd Place.
#52A South Kedzie
This route change complements the #52 Kedzie/California adjustment and improves travel in the corridor and the efficiency of both routes. The #52A service now terminates at the Kedzie station on the Orange Line at all times. Transfer to the
#52 Kedzie/California is required for travel north on Kedzie. The change to the #52A, along with the change to the #52 Kedzie/California, provides more frequent service between 63rd Place and Kedzie station on the Orange Line.
#86 Narragansett/Ridgeland
The route is extended north along Nagle to Milwaukee/Devon and continues to serve Wright College and the Green Line from the far Northwest Side. Provides a one-seat ride along Narragansett/Nagle between the far Northwest Side and Oak Park, later evening service along Nagle and new connections to CTA bus routes #56A, #68, #81W, #88 and Pace #270.
#90 Harlem
The route is extended south to CTA's Harlem/Lake Green Line station and Metra's Oak Park station, and provides a new connection between the Harlem Blue Line station on the O'Hare branch and the Green Line in Oak Park. The extension provides a new O'Hare Airport connection via the Harlem Blue Line station for customers who are south of Grand, and connects to Metra rail stations on the Milwaukee West Line at Mont Clare and the Union Pacific West Line in Oak Park. The route also provides new connections to CTA bus route #72 and Pace bus routes #305, #309, #313 and #318.
#91 Austin
This route serves CTA's Jefferson Park Blue Line station on the O'Hare branch and Metra's Jefferson Park station. When school is in session select buses will travel to Taft High School via Nagle instead of the Jefferson Park stations.The former weekday portion of the route along Nagle to Milwaukee/Devon will now be served by the #86 Narragansett/Ridgeland route extension.
Overall Service Improvements Since 1998
Overall since November 1998, CTA has made service improvements on 72 percent of its bus routes, (110 out of 153 total routes), on all seven of its existing rail routes and introduced a new rail route, the Pink Line, on June 25, 2006.
A total of 308 improvements (271 bus and 37 rail) have been implemented which include 27 new bus routes and one new rail line, expanded hours of service, expanded hours at rail entrances, added trips to reduce wait times and route changes to improve access and connectivity. Most improvements come from adding trips to improve frequency of CTA buses and trains.
Information on all CTA service can by found by calling 836-7000 from any local area code or on the web site at www.transitchicago.com.
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