CHICAGO — The CTA’s Yellow Line is running again after a prolonged hiatus following a crash that hospitalized 16 people and left three in critical condition.
The first Yellow Line train took off 4:45 a.m. Friday following “comprehensive safety analysis and testing,” according to a CTA statement.
The agency previously told NBC5 Wednesday there was no timetable for the Yellow Line’s reopening.
At the forefront of new safety changes: slowing Yellow Line trains below the rest of the system, from 55 mph to 35 mph, and to 25 mph near the Howard station crash site.
In the statement, the CTA said the lengthy, unclear closure was due to the agency’s safety testing and compliance with a field investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board into the Nov. 16 crash.
A preliminary report by the safety board released last month said a train operator was unable to stop in time following a late command, swiftly hitting the emergency brakes but still crashing into a snow removal machine, which had been on the tracks for training purposes.
But much about the crash remains unknown. The safety board is investigating the CTA’s signal system, the performance of its train brakes and “organic material” on the rails that might have affected the stopping distance.
The CTA tallied its equipment damages to be around $8.7 million, according to the report.
In reopening the Yellow Line, the CTA tested several trains in various weather conditions, according to the agency’s statement. The CTA also had crews power wash the tracks to remove debris, and it will increase communication protocols when “non-transport vehicles” are on the rails.
“We extend our gratitude to our riders impacted by this incident and for their patience,” CTA President Dorval Carter said in the statement. “I wanted to make sure we looked at every aspect of this incident, as thoroughly as we could, to ensure the highest levels of safety when we reopened. I will never compromise safety for expediency.”
At least four lawsuits from injured riders have been filed against the CTA for negligence, according to documents obtained by Block Club.
Attorney Joseph T. Murphy, who is representing several injured riders, took the CTA to task for limited communication during the seven-week closure.
“The public remains in the dark, and the CTA needs to be more transparent so the passengers can have more confidence riding on the Yellow Line,” Murphy said in a statement.
The agency ran shuttle buses along the Skokie Swift line in the north suburbs while the Yellow Line remained closed after the crash.
The CTA expects the federal watchdog investigation to wrap up this year.
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