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    1. Rail
    2. Railroad Signals, PTC, Control Systems and Products

    CTA’s Your New Blue signal upgrade project enters final phase

    Jan. 20, 2022
    Weekend shuttle trains will operate between the O’Hare and Rosemont Blue Line stations.
    Related To: Chicago Transit Authority (CTA)
    CTA
    Cta Rosemont Station 61e993f6c0ee1

    The Chicago Transit Authority’s (CTA) ongoing Your New Blue (YNB) O’Hare Branch Signal Upgrade project is now entering its final phase.  

    The upcoming work includes reoccurring weekend-only project work that will require overnight lane closures of the Kennedy Expressway (I-190) near O’Hare International Airport, and operation of a shuttle train between the O’Hare and Rosemont Blue Line stations. 

    As part of this $207 million, multi-year project, CTA crews are replacing a nearly four-decade-old rail signal system, which was installed when the Blue Line was extended by eight miles, from Jefferson Park to O’Hare, in the early 1980s. This project will help improve Blue Line service by allowing CTA to add trains to meet increased demand and will help improve the reliability of service. 

    To reduce the impact on customers and travelers, and to allow crews to perform work safely and efficiently, major project work will be scheduled for weekends only, beginning at 8:00 p.m. each Friday and continue through 4:00 a.m. the following Monday. Project work begins Jan. 21-24 and will continue each weekend through late April, weather permitting.  

    During these times, Blue Line trains will run in two sections: A shuttle train will operate back and forth between O’Hare and Rosemont, in addition to regular service continuing to run between Rosemont and Forest Park (via downtown subway). To ride through (beyond the Rosemont station), customers will simply need to change trains across the platform to continue their trip in either direction. 

    Blue Line riders should listen for announcements on board trains for further direction and allow for extra travel time. 

    In addition, during the overnight hours on weekends, the Kennedy Expressway (I-190) lanes leading to and from O’Hare International Airport may also be reduced to a single lane at times. 

    The O’Hare Branch Signal Upgrade project is the largest component of the $492 million YNB modernization program to provide faster, smoother and more reliable commutes along the O’Hare branch of the Blue Line – one of the city’s busiest rail lines.