Brown Line trains rerouted Sunday to the Red Line subway south of Fullerton; Express bus service provided for Big 10 tournament at the United Center; and Longer trains operating for St. Patrick’s Day festivities
The Chicago Transit Authority is a convenient and affordable transit option this weekend for those traveling to the Big 10 basketball tournament at the United Center and St. Patrick’s Day festivities downtown and on the South Side beginning Friday through Sunday. The CTA is also alerting customers to track maintenance work that will reroute Brown Line trains to operate in the State Street subway on Sunday.
To accommodate those traveling to/from these events, the CTA will be providing enhanced bus and rail service on select routes, listed below.
The CTA strongly recommends that customers load transit value or unlimited-ride passes to their Ventra fare cards at rail stations, online or at more than 1,300 local retailers ahead of time or purchase a 1-day unlimited ride Ventra ticket. This will help to decrease customers’ travel time and allow them to skip long lines at station vending machines, including on return trips. Customers can also use their personal contactless bank cards to board trains and buses. For more information on how to use Ventra, visit transitchicago.com/ventra.
Customers are encouraged to plan ahead and allow extra travel time.
Brown Line Trains Rerouted on Sunday
On Sunday, March 15, from 5 a.m. until 6 p.m.,from the elevated tracks to the State Street Subway.
During this time, Brown Line trains will serve each station between North/Clybourn and Roosevelt in both directions. Between Kimball and Fullerton, Brown Line trains will operate normally.
Service to/from Armitage, Sedgwick, Chicago and Merchandise Mart
For customers who wish to board or exit from the Armitage, Sedgwick, Chicago and Merchandise Mart Brown Line stations, free shuttle buses will operate in both directions between Fullerton and Clark/Lake, making stops at or near the affected stations.
Loop Elevated Shuttle Train
For customers in the downtown/Loop area, a shuttle train will operate around the Loop for connections to Brown Line service in the subway and the shuttle buses at Clark/Lake. Customers can board this shuttle train at any Loop elevated station from the Outer Loop platform, which is normally served by Brown Line trains.
Big 10 Tournament at United Center
College basketball fans heading to/from the Big 10 Tournament at the United Center can take the #19 United Center Express, #20 Madison and #50 Damen bus routes, which provide direct service to the arena for all seven sessions of games through Sunday, March 15 (see full schedule).
#19 buses will leave every 10 minutes from Michigan and Randolph beginning 90 minutes before the start of the first game until 10 minutes after the start of the second game of each session. Following the games, #19 buses will await customers on the north side of the United Center eastbound on Madison near Gate 3 and will depart approximately every 10-15 minutes for one hour.
Rail Service
Fans also can reach the United Center via the Green and Pink lines. Both routes stop at the Ashland/Lake station which is just a few blocks northeast of the United Center. Fans exiting at the Ashland/Lake station can transfer to #9 Ashland buses or simply walk a few blocks to the stadium.
The Blue Line is also an option to get to the United Center. The Illinois Medical District station on the Forest Park branch of the Blue Line is a few blocks south of the United Center, so riders may walk from the station to the United Center.
St. Patrick’s Day Events Downtown
The CTA will provide enhanced rail service beginning Friday evening to accommodate participants heading downtown to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day and also on Saturday for those attending the annual downtown St. Patrick’s Day Parade/Chicago River Dyeing event. Also on Saturday, seven downtown bus routes will be detoured from the Grant Park area beginning early morning until mid-afternoon.
The river dyeing ceremony commences at 9:15 a.m. followed by the parade, which steps off at noon from Columbus/Balbo and travels north.
Rail Service
- Friday: Longer trains will operate on the Red, Brown, Blue and Orange lines until 12 a.m.
- Saturday: Longer trains will operate on the Brown, Blue, Green, Orange and Purple lines beginning at 8 a.m. until at least 5 p.m. More frequent Red Line service will be provided with trains operating every 4-6 minutes beginning 8:30 a.m. until 7 p.m.
Bus Service
From 7 a.m. until approximately 3:30 p.m. Saturday, seven CTA bus routes will be detoured due to the closure of Congress Plaza and Columbus Drive between Roosevelt and Monroe, for the annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade. The parade will step off at noon. Routes affected during this time are: