Lack Of Spare Train Cars Means Crowded Rides On Metra
This will be another crowded day on many rush-hour Metra trains, and it appears that riders will have to endure shorter, and in many cases more crowded, trains at least through Friday.
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This will be another crowded day on many rush-hour Metra trains, and it appears that riders will have to endure shorter, and in many cases more crowded, trains at least through Friday.
Metra's top executive is apologizing for a series of problems that have befallen the commuter rail system over the past two weeks; Not the least of which is the way it has communicated with riders.
Metra anticipates normal rush hours Friday, while service on Amtrak to Detroit, St. Louis, Quincy and Carbondale remains on a reduced schedule. However, neither will rule out delays blamed on switching problems.
Metra can't guarantee it won't have even more delays Friday because it is still dealing with this bitter blast. The problem, once again: frozen switches on tracks. CBS 2's Dorothy Tucker reports.
Switching and mechanical problems - as well as at least two cars stuck on the tracks - caused delays and a few cancellations on several Metra lines during the Thursday morning commute.
A Lake County Sheriff's detective escaped his unmarked squad car before it was struck by a Metra train Monday night after getting stuck in the snow.
Frigid conditions in the Chicago area continued to create problems for drivers, commuters, and air travelers, leaving passengers stuck at the airport, and even stranded on Amtrak trains headed to Chicago.
Metra canceled dozens of trains Tuesday and combined several other inbound and outbound routes on BNSF and Union Pacific lines as historically cold temperatures continued to wreak havoc on the rail system.
Some Metra commuters experienced delays of up to two and a half hours on their morning commute, especially on the Milwaukee District Lines.
Four people reportedly were taken to hospitals after a Metra Rock Island train hit a concrete retaining wall while pulling into the station downtown.
Inbound Union Pacific/Northwest Line no. 630 struck a truck that was backing into a lumber yard in the 6900 block of North Northwest Highway about 8:20 a.m.
Interim Chief Executive Officer Don Orseno says Metra wants the "positive train control" system but is asking for an extension of the January 2016 federal deadline.
Metra and other railroads have until the end of 2015 to install "positive train control" systems – which allow a computer to override human error, and take control of a train, but railroads have asked for a three-year extension to implement the system.
The pedestrian was struck around 5:45 p.m. by Burlington North Santa Fe line Train No.1288 near the Main Street Metra station in Downers Grove.
A person was hit and killed by a Metra train in southwest suburban Tinley Park Friday morning, halting Rock Island District trains in both directions.
The commuter rail agency's high-wind solution is decidedly low-tech -- the anemometer, a wind-speed measuring instrument that has been around for more than 500 years.
The train was disabled and stopped near the Glen Ellyn Depot Metra Station since about 4:30 a.m., preventing traffic from crossing the tracks at three crossing gates, but moved out of the way by 8:30 a.m.
A pedestrian died when he walked in front of a Metra train in northwest suburban Park Ridge.
Volodimyr Matkivski, 41, of Warminster, Pa., was cited for ignoring a posted sign warning motorists about the 22-foot clearance between the tracks and Bartlett Road.
Metra officials said Tuesday morning that they expect "normal" service on the Milwaukee District West Line following a Monday afternoon crash betweeen a train and semi truck that injured two near northwest suburban Bartlett.
A Metra commuter train has collided with a truck transporting automobiles near Bartlett, delaying service Monday afternoon.
The agreement kept intact the historic division of the supposedly discretionary funds: 98 percent to the CTA, 2 percent to Pace, while essentially forgiving a $56 million loan to the CTA that CTA has characterized as a grant and offering Metra $2 million for capital projects.
A key figure in last summer's Metra transit scandal is now working for the state of Illinois in a recrafted job after a referral from Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan.
Metra Union Pacific/North Line trains are stopped near north suburban Lake Forest because of a suspicious package Friday morning.
A suspicious package at a downtown rail station created a major commuter headache for some Metra and South Shore train riders.
Two people were injured in an apartment building fire on Monday morning in the Chatham neighborhood on the South Side of Chicago.
Crews on Monday were to break ground on Chicago's first pedestrian hybrid beacon.
The Bears will look to rally from last week's ugly loss to the Vikings when they host the Eagles on Monday night at Soldier Field.
Illinois and Cook County are hiring for some important roles before the 2026 midterm elections on Nov. 3.
It's been 100 days since the Obama Presidential Center opened in Chicago to the public. So how has that gone?
The plant is expected to create 1,750 permanent jobs in Iowa, a White House official said.
Sheri Mecklenburg resigned from the Department of Justice this week, penning a scathing letter in which she said U.S. Attorney Andrew Boutros "personally directed" the Broadview 6 prosecution that she says ended her career.
The Chicago City Council deferred a full vote on the sale of the city's parking meters from one private company to another to their next full council meeting as they face an end-of-month deadline.
In a 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court sided with the Trump administration in its push to use a controversial database to review state voter rolls for potential noncitizens.
Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois is demanding the Pentagon and Federal Aviation Administration reject President Trump's call to convert plans for a massive triumphal arch into a "top grade Military Complex."
Scammers are now impersonating the patient portal MyChart, using realistic-looking emails, texts, and websites to try to steal personal information and, in some cases, get malware on your computer.
Fuel prices continue to climb across the country, and that has U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Illinois) pointing the finger at President Trump.
Nicor customers will get a break on their bills this fall after Illinois Attorney General Kwame Roul reached an agreement with the utility to cut $140 million from its requested rate hike.
Drivers in Chicago and beyond were paying the highest gas prices ever recorded for the Labor Day holiday as millions of Americans were making their way home on Monday.
Around 115 million domestic and international tourists visited Illinois last year, pushing visitor spending past $50 billion for the first time and generating more than $88 billion in total economic impact.
Sixteen of the state's cases this year trace to an outbreak among people who were unvaccinated or had an unknown vaccination history. Health officials say the overall risk is very low but want residents to confirm they're protected.
The Chicago Department of Public Health on Wednesday launched its first "street psychiatry" teams, in an effort to provide mental health services to some of the city's most vulnerable people.
A new Illinois law lets terminally ill patients request a lethal prescription to end their lives, making the state the 13th in the U.S. — and the first in the Midwest — to permit it.
Nearly half of Americans with medical debt owe at least $2,000, forcing them to make tough choices, new research shows.
A judge on Tuesday was expected to place two shuttered Chicago-area safety-net hospitals into receivership.
McDonald's said Wednesday it will spend $8.5 billion over the next decade to modernize its restaurants globally.
The future of Rate Field was back in the spotlight on Wednesday.
Plans for a new Chicago White Sox stadium in the South Loop have residents near the existing ballpark in Bridgeport concerned, not just because the team might be leaving, but also what might be coming nearby.
A new report from the University of Illinois Chicago said federal immigration enforcement led to $1.26 billion in unspent money at retail establishments and restaurants in Cook County.
Around 115 million domestic and international tourists visited Illinois last year, pushing visitor spending past $50 billion for the first time and generating more than $88 billion in total economic impact.
Survivor, Koko Taylor, The Plain White T's and REO Speedwagon's Kevin Cronin were among those honored Sunday night at the Harris Theater. The ceremony is the hall's largest fundraiser.
Madonna won Artist of the Year while Taylor Swift became the most awarded artist in Video Music Awards history.
Challenging documentaries and award-winning features are among the offerings of New York City's leading cinema event, starring such luminaries as Pedro Pascal, Adam Driver, Scarlett Johansson, Julianne Moore and Godzilla.
Taylor Swift announced her new single "Patient Zero" earlier this week, saying she has been "impatiently waiting" to announce that it will be out on Friday.
A Tennessee judge granted Dolly Parton's estate a temporary restraining order Wednesday against the late singer's nephew Bryan Seaver and his private security company.
Meteorologist David Yeomans has your 11 a.m. First Alert Weather forecast for Monday, Sept. 28, 2026.
Iran has called off talks planned for Monday with the Trump administration after the president rejected their latest peace proposal.
The beacon is being installed in Chicago's Edgewater neighborhood, at the intersection of Ridge, Hollywood, and Wayne avenues.
The Chicago Bears will look to rally from last week's ugly loss to the Vikings when they host the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday night at Soldier Field.
NORAD said fighter jets redirected 10 pilots and fired flares in two cases after private planes and helicopters strayed into flight restrictions set for the president's visit. Lauren Victory reports.
There was a scramble in the skies Sunday tied to President Trump's visit to the Chicago area.
A woman is dead after a wrong-way driver caused a three-car crash on DuSable Lake Shore Drive on Chicago's South Side late Sunday night.
Benjamin Satterley, an English-born wrestler known for high-flying moves that delighted fans worldwide, was known as "Pac."
Two people were injured in an apartment building fire on Monday morning in the Chatham neighborhood on the South Side of Chicago.
Crews on Monday were to break ground on Chicago's first pedestrian hybrid beacon.
In 2024, an off-duty Chicago police officer shot and killed a dog that was being held by its owner. COPA and CPD Supt. Larry Snelling agreed the officer should be fired. But more than two years later, that hasn't happened.
Surging gas and diesel prices are putting the pinch on farmers with harvest season underway, and could drive grocery prices even further up.
Another business owned by a couple under investigation for mishandling bodies at funeral homes and crematories on the South Side and in the south suburbs was raided by law enforcement Thursday.
Crown Point native Chris Payne was arrested for the 2018 sexual assault of a woman, which he has adamantly claimed from the beginning that he had nothing to do with.
A Chicago nonprofit is suing its former president, accusing him of illegally diverting millions of dollars in charitable funds and jeopardizing the charity's future in fighting homelessness.
The Bears will look to rally from last week's ugly loss to the Vikings when they host the Eagles on Monday night at Soldier Field.
Benjamin Satterley, an English-born wrestler known for high-flying moves that delighted fans worldwide, was known as "Pac."
The Chicago Cubs beat the Boston Red Sox 6-2 on Sunday in a regular-season finale that was relocated to Tropicana Field.
President Trump's presence in the Chicagoland area brought crowds of supporters and protesters.
The White Sox open their best-of-three AL Wild Card series at either Houston or Texas on Tuesday.
The investigation into an alleged rape at Cornell University in 2024 will be reopened, authorities said Monday.
The man charged in the shooting of a 1-year-old girl inside an apartment on Chicago's Southwest Side was due in court on Monday.
A Chicago violence interrupter is remembered for the difference he tried to make in his South Shore neighborhood. Courtney Harris worked to keep young people away from violence, but died in a shooting over the weekend.
Three men were wounded in a shooting on Thursday night outside a liquor store in the South Chicago neighborhood.
A sixth-grade teacher and basketball coach at a school in Island Lake, Illinois, was arrested Thursday on child pornography charges.
