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Public Transit (C.T.A.) 2006 Blue Line Rider Comments:

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07/06/2006
In response to the July 6, switching problems on the 54/cermak blue line between Polk and Racine which shut down the 54/Cermak Blue Line:

This is affecting a lot of people. Everyone is waiting today. [The CTA] is taking it [54/Cermak Blue Line] away from us. They’re rerouting. There are a lot of people waiting today. Today there is no choice. Why should we have to transfer when we didn’t have to before? This doesn’t make any sense at all. We had weekends on the Blue Line. Not anymore. People on the west side need the train. People living in places like 26th Street and Cicero.
xxx
07/06/2006
Here is another Blue Line story.  I have just arrived at work 40 minutes late.  The reason:  the CTA cancelled all 54th Street Blue Line service and made no announcement to that effect until after I watched three Forest Park trains pass me at Irving Park and went to complain to the station agent.  He was unaware that the trains had been cancelled either and called in to make inquiry.  Because I was already half an hour late, I could not wait for him to get an answer and went back to the platform to catch a FP train to the Medical Center.  I then walked the extra 8 minutes to my office from there.  By the way, when I got to Belmont, I heard the first announcement that the Blue Line 54th Street service had been cancelled for the morning.  They repeated that announcement at nearly every stop thereafter.  My real concern here is whether the CTA has just been running these few 54th Street Blue Line trains to pacify us during the transition and will soon abandon the service altogether.  They want to push the Pink Line service on us despite the fact that, no matter how you cut it, the Pink Line is not a good alternative for me.  It takes more time, requires inconvenient transfers, and limits my ability to find a seat on the way home each night.  Thanks again for your efforts,
xxx
07/05/2006
The pink line sucks majorly !
Should be out !
xxx
07/05/2006
7:52 Arrival from Purple Line on Clark/Lake
7:56 Get on Pink Line
8:02 1 minute Delay Between Adams/Wabash and Library/State
8:04 1 minute Delay Before Lasalle/Van Buren
8:05  Delay before Quincy
8:09 Resume to Quincy
8:12 Delay before Clinton
8:15 Arrive at Clinton
8:21 Arrive at Polk
8:31 Central Park Stop

From Lasalle/Van Buren stop I ran into a friend from Northwestern.  He is doing an internship as a technician at Rush Medical Center for the summer.  During the course of our conversation, I asked him about the Pink Line and if he had heard anything about it from his co-workers.  He said he had heard "a lot of complaints about it (Pink Line) from his co-workers.  He was surprised when he found out that the Pink Line "wasn't new," and that he had noticed that it had taken "longer than usual" to get from his purple line stop on state/lake to Polk, especially when he arrived at state/lake close to 8:00 AM.

xxx
07/03/2006
After last week’s experience with the Pink Line, I decided to switch to the OHare Blue Line train for my Central Park – Jackson commute. Since there were no printed timetables for arrival at either station, I checked the CTA website. The new timetables were not posted so I called CTA who promptly told me that the train had been eliminated. I gently persisted and after checking with a supervisor, was given the times.
 This morning I took the OHare train from Central Park during the morning rush hour. Everything was fine until we arrived at Polk. We sat at Polk waiting for signals, then again about 50 feet after Polk, then about six more times before arriving at Racine (the next stop). I’ve taken the Blue Line for years and have never seen anything like it. I’m concerned that the implementation of the Pink Line has somehow messed up the Blue Line. So now we have a choice between a time-extending slow poke trip through the Loop (Pink Line) or the direct route with multiple dead stops waiting for signals (Blue Line)? The old service looks better every day.
xxx
06/30/2006
Este mensaje es para expresar mi desacuerdo de la Linea Rosada................creo que esta linea es una perdida de tiempo y no nos provee servicio en las estaciones de la Racine, UIC/Halsted, Lasalle, Clinton y Jackcon. esot nos afecta en que perdemos mucho tiempo en dar la vuelta al Loop para poder llegar a estas estaciones.  Por otro lado los estudiantes de la Universidad UIC tambien son afectados en como transpotarse ala Universidad. Por favor ayuden a que la linea 54/Cermjak de la Linea azul sea mantenidad y no la la rosada. Gracias!!!
xxx
06/30/2006
The new Pink Line has effectively doubled my commuting time from Central Park to Jackson. My normal morning rush hour trip on the old 54/Cermak Blue Line efficiently lasted about 20 minutes; now it’s about 45 minutes. The return trip is equally slow. Why? Because the route is longer and competes with too many other lines and trains.
Now the Pink Line stops to wait for signals (or trains) on the Paulina connector to enter the Green Line track; then stops again to wait for the Brown Line to pass before entering the Loop; then stops again to wait for the Orange Line before making the corner at the south end of the Loop. The return to Central Park involves constant stops in the reverse direction. Judging by the grimaces on the faces of fellow passengers, I wasn’t the only one frustrated by this.
 Unfortunately, the new Pink Line does not deliver on its promise of better service. Judging by actual performance, its motto should be Less Service! Worse Connections! Slower Trips!
One positive change in the service is the increased frequency of service with shorter trains. The biggest negative change is the new route. This provides an obvious solution for the future. The best possible combination for Blue Line riders on the 54/Ceramak branch would be to keep the new increased frequency and return to the old route.
xxx
06/30/2006
I am greatly inconvenienced by the 'cuts in service to the Cermak Blue Line'.  I am an employee at the UIC Library of Health Sciences on Polk Street and I was using the Cermak Blue Line - Polk street stop to come from the Blue line Jefferson Park stop. The half hour (rush hours only) Polk street Cermak trains have lengthened my commute by at least 30 minutes each way.  This 'cut' in Cermak Blue line train service has also inconvenienced many of the night workers who used this line.  I am also concerned about the high amount of handicapped riders who have to make an extra effort coping with the 'cuts in the Polk St.stop Cermak blue line
service.

Transfering to the pink line also lengthened my communt [sic] by at least 30 mins. each way and there were only 4 other people on the PINK LINE train car with me during RUSH HOUR.

In my opinion the new pink line service is NOT FASTER, NOT CONVENIENTE, IT IS A WASTE OF TIME AND MONEY. CUTTING THE BLUE LINE CERMAK SERVICE HAS BECOME A LIABILITY TO THE ENTIRE MEDICAL DISTRICT.

I think the CTA should run the Cermak Blue Line to and from O'Hare every 10 minutes.  These trains are always crowded they are going to be needed even more when large crowds of students and handicapped return in August and try to commute between the East and West sides of campus with a 10 min. window between classes.
xxx
6/30/2006
I am walking more -- a good thing -- between west and east campus. Unfortunately, I think I am going to need to spend more money on cabs if I am running late (I do not own a car so driving is not an option)!

Between the cutback in UIC shuttle service and now the loss of 54 Cermak during the day -- walking is the fastest route for me most times. I can still use the congress Blue line or Harrison bus, since both are convenient from my office on east campus, but I have to allow extra time depending on where I am going on west campus to walk.

Thanks for asking.
xxx
06/29/2006
I arrived on the Pink Line at 3:57. I have been waiting for about 11 minutes. I asked a gentleman how long he had been waiting for a train, a train and he said he had been waiting five minutes prior to when I arrived. There was a group of people talking about how long they have to wait till the connection at 18th?....i believe. He has to…when he takes the pink line there is an 8:21 connection with the green line? The next connection is at 8:52 and if he misses that (the 8:21) he is 30 minutes late for work. His quote is “pink stinks.” What he was talking to this group of people about…these people were angry at how long they had to wait for a train…ummmm….they said they had been waiting for about 20 minutes for the pink line to arrive. Uh…there was one woman who was confused as to why the pink line didn’t go to o’hare because she needed to go there. She had been waiting a long time and there wasn’t any connection to o’hare at all……………. People on the California line look very disinterested waiting for the blue line to come. Five people got on at the western stop, about 4 on the California stop, and two on the…uh….two on the kedzie stop……………..the train (inaudible)….i think the microphones are damaged in this car….i can’t hear the stop. I don’t know what that means……………………………………………………………………………………………..umm…I arrived at 4:19 at the clark and lake station…uh…there was no delays as opposed to yesterday when there was a big delay on polk. People were confused about where to go….umm…uh there were three cops outside the clark and lake that were in a group and there was another cop walking around. I don’t know what the problem was. Uh, but it seemed to be a non-issue by the time I arrived.
xxx
06/28/2006
I am a faculty member on the west side of campus. I used to travel from the blue line Rosemont stop to Polk. Here are the changes I have made:

* In the morning, I take the blue line from Rosemont to Medical District and walk. The distance to my building is about the same.

* Going home, I continue to board at Polk street, mostly out of habit, but also because when the days get shorter, I am not comfortable walking to waiting at the Medical District stop in the dark.

* Monday I was lucky and the first train to come at Polk was the O'Hare train, so that was fine. Yesterday I took the Pink Line train for the first time. I enjoyed the change of scenery, but didn't like the time involved having to transfer. I also had to stand almost the entire way from Clark & Lake to O'Hare.

* I don't ever take the El between the east and west campuses (I use the UIC shuttle for this purpose.) so no impact for me there.

All and all, the changes have resulted in a minor inconvience for me. My bigger concern is for the many individuals with disabilities who use (or used to use) the Polk street stop.

Thank you for your work on this issue.
xxx
06/28/2006
I am not pleased with CTA running the 54 Cermak train every half hour.  I am a Metra train commuter to the LaSalle Street Station.  When I arrive at the station I would go down into the Blue Line tunnel which is just a little ways across from LaSalle Street Station.  Previously, depending on my timing I had only to wait 1-7 minutes for a 54 Cermak train.  Now if I am not lucky to catch the 54 Cermak train right away, I have to wait and watch 3-4 Forest Park trains go by before the 54 Cermak comes along.  If I take the Forest Park, I would have to get off at Damen and walk a much longer distance to my destination.  When I get off at the Polk Street station I can walk to my west campus destination in about five minutes

Yesterday, I and a fellow commuter tried taking the Pink Line going home and we thought we would go to Lasalle Street .  However, we had to go all the way through the loop and starting back around to get to LaSalle Street elevated stop.    Also the train seemed to stop and linger after every other stop. The engineer did make an announcement apologizing for the delays.  It seems he couldn't move because, the train ahead was not moving because of signals.   One rider who normally took this route said it was much faster.prior to the Pink Line   She said because more trains are sharing the same tracks it has slowed everything down going through the Loop.  Granted, there are always a few kinks to be worked out when a new system starts up but I think CTA needs to rethink this. 

It seems to me CTA has completely alienated the riders who go from Polk Street to LaSalle Street in the Blue Line tunnel stop and vice versa.  There are quite a few riders who take the Metra train at LaSalle Street and the old system for us was much faster and more efficient.  At the very least couldn't they have Blue Line 54 Cermak trains come every ten to fifteen minutes instead of 30 minutes or longer.

 Please note that  UIC Metra riders on the Rock Island Train to LaSalle street are not fortunate enough to have a UIC commuter bus come pick up commuters at our station as they do at Union Station and Northwestern Station.

Have you had more positive or negative feedback on this new system?

Thank you for letting me vent!
xxx
06/28/2006
I received a flyer that told me I could send complaints about the pink line to this email address, so here goes:
I do not think the 54/Cermak train should be replaced with the pink line. I used to be able to take the blue line from Logan Square to Polk, where I work, and the trip took exactly 30 minutes with no transfers. Now when I try to get to the UIC campus, I have to either transfer to the pink line and spend an additional 10 minutes traveling around the entire loop, or
else transfer to the green line first, and then to the pink line. It takes me nearly twice as long to get to work in the mornings now, and I'm not sure who is benefiting from this new service. Previously, anyone who took the blue line to Clark/Lake could catch a train every 7.5 minutes, because the 54/Cermak train alternated with the Forrest Park train. Now, everyone
(not just those working downtown) is forced to make a transfer at a platform that is already ridiculously congested during rush-hour. There is also no way to travel between the UIC campuses because the stops, which are less than a mile apart, are being serviced by two separate lines. I do not agree with the new pink line service, and once again I am having difficulty determining who exactly will benefit from this new service.
Thank you,
xxx
6/28/2006
I had to go to the Loop again tonight. At 6:30pm, I was in a quandary of how to get there. I could drive, but parking is really bad lately and I hate driving. I decided to bike, but then discovered that my tires were low and my bike pump was not working.

So you guessed it, the CTA. I tried to make the #60 Blue Island bus, but was 3 minutes too late. I thought the bus might be late, but it was nowhere in site. So I walked back past my apartment to the Damen train stop. From my apartment, the walk was about 6 minutes. I waited a couple minutes, but the train was on time arriving at 7:07. I boarded the Pink Line. I exited the train at 7:11 at Polk Street hoping to walk to the Illinois Medical District stop to catch a Blue Line train. I asked the CTA attendants there for walking directions to the other stop. One of the attendants was rude. The other attendant was less snide and told me the way. I walked it quickly in 8 minutes. I waited a couple more minutes to board a Blue Line train. I exited at Lasalle and walked to work in about 5 minutes. The total trip took me 40 minutes. Usually the trip takes me 20-25 minutes.

I was fortunate to get a car ride from someone on my way home. I think I’m going to buy a new bicycle pump. I don’t know what I’m going to do in the winter.
xxx
06/28/2006
Another thing, only the pink line schedule is posted on the platform at Central Park.  If you want to see the blue line schedule you have to do it before going through the turnstyle.  It is on the side wall off to the side of the machines to add more money.
xxx
06/28/2006
I live near the Blue Line UIC / Halsted stop and often take the train in to work downtown in the mornings.  I found that my wait for the train on Monday morning at the UIC / Halsted stop was unusually long as did someone who came and sat to wait next to me after I had been there for a while. Unfortunately, I assume that this is due to the Pink Line and it is resulting in my seeking alternative means of transportation. Additionally, I noticed that the announcement at the Jackson stop noted that one could transfer there to the Pink, and Brown lines.  I assumed that was a mistake.
Cheers,
xxx
06/28/2006
I may be preaching to the choir here, but at least I can try to get my voice heard.  I appreciate your efforts over the past year or so trying to stop this mess.  Here are some of the problems I have had and how I have been affected.
Monday morning, Irving Park station, 9:15 a.m. stumbled onto the 54th Street train by plain dumb luck.  Commuted in as if there had been no change.
Monday afternoon, monitored Blue Line trains going past my office from 2: 46 p.m. forward.  Left office at 5:35, which put me on the Polk platform at 5:45.  Blue line train due any minute, right?  No.  Gave up and took second Pink train to come along.  Got to Clark/Lake only to hear that folks had been waiting already more than 10 minutes for the next Blue Line train.  Finally got onto packed train and arrived home near Irving Park 20 minutes later than would have before the change.
Tuesday morning, again trying to guess when 54th bound train would arrive at Irving.  Thought I saw it go by as I approached the platform.  So, boarded Forest Park train and rode to Medical Center.  Walked an extra 10 minutes to my office which overlooks the old Douglas line at Roosevelt.
All in all, I have lost 30 or more minutes and gained a great deal of stress and anxiety.  Meanwhile, we can't get a Blue Line schedule off the Internet and the CTA keeps offering me useless Pink Line schedules.  It runs every 8-10 minutes.  I need a schedule for the trains that run every half hour!
I can think of half a dozen things the CTA could have done either to avoid this mess altogether or to make it less painful.  Just informing those of us who are still best served by the 54th Blue Line trains when the trains would arrive at our stations would help.  A working announcement system that notifies you what trains are coming and when they'll arrive (ever been to DC?) would help immensely.  Etc.
Anyway, I feel moderately better, but know that my always slow commute is destined to be much worse for the foreseeable future.  I, like many of my colleagues who depended on the 54th street Blue Line trains here on the West campus, am angry at the CTA for reducing our service and making our commute much more complicated.
xxx
06/28/2006
I have been late for the past 2 days since the pink line started. The elevated in the Loop is already too crowded , therefore it causes the train to sit ,waiting for the other trains to move.  I do not need a tour of the Loop and that’s how I feel in addition to other coworkers in my dept. I have to walk further to transfer from the red line to the pink line, walk up a large amount of  stairs, and then once on the train, several periods of  just sitting due to other trains. I feel it will definitely delay my travel time in the morning no matter what station I choose to board, because I have to walk further to get to the elevated.

I feel there was no consideration taken for individuals with wheelchairs, handicapped, or other disabilities such as pulmonary/cardiac problems,  arthritis/bone/muscle disorders. The stations don’t have elevators so you have to walk up all those stairs.

Patients will definitely go to Rush or Stroger Hospitals if they are able to transfer to the Blue Line and board the Forest Park and exit right at those hospitals.I also wonder why the CTA would eliminate the convenience of staff,students, employees being able to travel back and forth between the east and west campuses.

I spoke to many coworkers, and I found only one person who found it more convenient.
xxx
06/28/2006
I am a student of UIC. Before the Pink line came about, I used to take the Blue line from UIC down to the Polk station. That travel used to take me about 5 minutes depending on my time of arrival to the station. On last Monday (6/26) it took me 30 minutes to travel the distance of two stations! Because i needed to go the opposite direction of my travel in order to transfer to the Pink line so I could get to the Polk station. Now that I know how long it is going to take me to travel using the Pink like, I switched to the Blue line Forest Park, and I get off at Medical Center and walk over to work, which still does not get me on time. The Pink line is very frustrating, and making me leave work earlier so I can get to class on time. Overall, the Pink line is making my travel more difficult, but I am not just talking about myself, knowing that many others are having difficulties getting to work on time.
xxx
06/28/2006
I haven't tried the pink link yet.  That would require me to walk east on Jackson from the Metra Union Station to Wells & Quincy for the morning trip.  I am concerned that taking the pink line for my evening trip will cause me to be on a later Metra train since I will have to make the Loop to get to Quincy & Wells.  I do plan to try the pink line later - probably in a week or so when some of the kinks have been worked out.
My commute to west side of campus from the Union Station has become slightly longer.  Last week, when the revamped bus routes were introduced, I took the #7 or #38 bus - whichever came first.  The wait can be up to 15 minutes.  One morning, an empty #38 bus zoomed by while another bus was at the stop (#60, #126, #7 & #38 all make this stop).  By Thursday, I went back to the subway to catch the Cermak line at Clinton & Congress.  As you know, that is no longer an option this week. 
There is no weather shelter at the bus stop located at Clinton & Jackson Streets.  Fifteen minutes standing in the rain, snow, or cold will certainly seem longer.  And, given the winter weather and traffic in Chicago, the wait will definitely be longer than 15 minutes. 
There is also a greater unpredicatability [sic] factor with the busses that I do not like.  The driver's driving style, the street traffic, events, and weather all impact the bus ride more severely than the train ride.  There are the occasional glitches in the train service but I've never had to stand for 15 in inclement weather waiting for one. 
Once all the experimentation on my part is complete - I will more than likely take the Forest Park Line - and end up walking from Congress & Paulina to my job in the PSB /Roosevelt & Paulina.  Some days that will be more challenging than other days because I have Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA.) 
xxx
06/28/2006
Some of us go back and forth between Pilsen and UIC on an ongoing basis. Now, we have to do it by bus (or go downtown to transfer to the 54/Cermak). The latter option requires going back far many stations to then come back again doubling the time you need to connect between UIC and Pilsen. The other routes going though UIC to Pilsen are Halsted and Blue Island. Halsted takes you to the east end of Pilsen where you have to take 18th. Blue Island takes you to mid-Pilsen. You have to take 18 to Cermak if you are going west or east on Pilsen. This morning I went to a meeting at the Mexican Museum. My options to come back were Damen to Harrison and Harrison to UIC; Ashland to Harrison and Harrison to UIC or the train downtown and then back to UIC. I opted for the Damen route. I had to wait for 15 minutes for the Damen bus to come and 25 minutes for the Harrison bus. Then, there was the time to walk from the Museum to Damen. Altogether, it took me 1 hour between Pilsen and UIC. Previously it took me about 20 minutes on average.
xxx
06/28/2006
Well, I actually don’t use the Pink Line because it doesn’t stop at UIC.  Since they replaced the Blue Line (more or less) with the Pink Line, there’s no more direct train service to campus, and therefore I don’t have the time to take public transit anymore.  I would never make it to class from work even close to on time with the requisite transfers and waiting for unreliable buses.  I now drive my car, increase traffic, and burn gas… which is costing me a fortune, not to mention the negative environmental impact.  I also have to pay for a CTA UPASS that I never use because direct access to campus has been taken away.  Oh, and I had to pay $140 for parking.  Needless to say, replacing direct Blue Line access with the Pink Line really screwed UIC students such as myself.
xxx
06/28/2006
The pink line has done everything but make my trips faster.  What once was a 35 minute trip to and from campus has turned to a one hour ride.  I now have to make three transfers, one bus to the blue line, take pink line to polk, and then the # 7 to the east campus.  My commute back home is the same.  I really hope the pink line gets erased after the trial run.  It's a migraine. 
xxx
06/28/2006
I tried it out this a.m. I had an appointment in the Thompson Center. When it was over and I was ready to return to campus, the rush hour blue line was still running, but I thought since I'm right at the blue line station, I'll give it a try. The train came almost right away. It was nice begin above ground the whole way instead of in the subway. HOWEVER, the ride  took twice as long and the blue line ride--20 minutes instead of 10. That's because from the Clark-Lake station going to UIC, the train first goes around the entire L-loop, stopping frequently to wait for other trains to pass and otherwise just crawling along. Finally, after reaching Clinton, it took off like a bullet and sped to Ashland--a mile and a half without a stop-- and I thought, ok, now we're moving, but then after Ashland it again slowed to a slow creep around the Paulina connector.

In short, so far it was less convenient by far, at least originating from the north end of the loop.
xxx
06/27/2006
a co-worker was complaining about the Pink Line today.  He lives in Logan Square, and said (I think I got this right) that coming to work in the morning regularly is taking him an extra 20 minutes, while going home takes him only about 10 minutes more.
xxx
06/27/2006
I'm a student at UIC and I'm currently taking summer classes. The Pink line is unreliable. after my class on Tuesdays, I have to walk it to Polk in order to get home because the blue line to 54th/cermak isn't running. Thursdays, I'm always running late to work. I don't like the service.
xxx

06/27/2006
I'm a grad student.

I now have to take the #60 bus from Pilsen. It often runs infrequently and is overcrowded, especially during rush hour (when I would have opted for the train). It also takes quite a bit longer. The reroute caused me to be late for work this morning.
xxx
06/27/2006
As a UIC student and daily having to take the blue line going towards O'hare to get to school.. I HATE IT! What used to be a 5 minute train ride from where I get on (Damen) to UIC halsted is now not possible. I have to take the blue island bus that takes a long time to get to school. I am really unhappy with the pink line. It is not only inconvenient but also confusing.
xxx
06/27/2006
hope all is well. i was so late to work today (1/2 hour), partially to do with my own oversleeping, but also cuz the 54th/cermak took real long.
 
but while i was waiting at the jackson stop, there were like 3 cta people walking around giving people timetables and advice on what to do with the blue line changes and the new pink line etc.... sorry to say but they were pretty nice.
 
anyways thats my report for ya.
xxx
06/27/2006
UPDATE: traffic on the train!!!

doesnt that just sound crazy.
 
well there was traffic, or at least thats wat the cta guy told us for 1/2 hour straight while we were stuck at the clinton pink line stop.
 
so i left work at like 5:45 and dint get back home till 7:30.. normally it takes at most an hour. and thats including my bike ride from the train back home. and the whole time i was thinkin i should have just waited for the blue-line 54th/cermak, just had to wait ten more minutes...
 
ugh! it was soooo annoying. stupid cta!!! basically the train guy said that there were a lot of trains from all the different lines going into the loop and so there is traffic. sorry for the delay, thank you for your patience and understanding...
 
ya know the most annoying part was just that he kept saying the same thing over and over again... like a really annoying recording except yu knew he was a real person...
 
anyways, i needed to rant about the long commute, and how i definately dont trust the pink line to get me anywhere on time.. and who better to complain to then you, aye.
 
hahaha.. you're gonna be the official receiver of my pink line-blue line woes..
xxx
06/27/2006
I took the pink line today it took forever and It made me go all through
downtown !!!
xxx
6/27/06
Tuesday night I had to go to my job in the Loop. Normally I take the 54/Cermak Blue Line from Damen or 18th Street to the Lasalle Blue Line CTA stop.

Assuming a 5 minute walk on either end of my trip, and 11 minutes on the train as per the RTA Tripsweb, this trip takes as little as 21 minutes. If I have to wait for the train, this trip can take up to 42 minutes. Usually the trip takes 20-25 minutes.

Since the Pink Line began, the Blue Line on our branch only runs every half hour during rush hours. I missed my 4:43pm Blue Line train and could not wait for the next one at 5:11pm.

I took the Pink Line. It was a five minute walk from my apartment to the 18th Street CTA station. I waited a couple minutes and then boarded a Pink Line train at 4:49pm. From 18th Street to the Library stop, the train took 31 minutes. I arrived at 5:20pm. Notable was the major delay on State Street as we waited for 2 Orange Line Trains and a Brown Line Train to pass. I was closer to my final destination and walked 2 minutes there. But my total travel time was 38 minutes. It is about 3 miles from my home to my work. Ten more minutes and I could have walked it!

My return trip on the Pink Line to Damen took about 35-40 minutes. There were two delays on the Loop on Wells, before we even got to Lake Street. This is actually competitive with the 54/Cermak Blue Line night schedule, which was very slow at this hour, mostly because of the lack of frequency but also because the CTA was running 2 Forest Park trains to every 54/Cermak train well before June 25.
xxx
06/27/2006
i wonder what uic is doing to assist uic community in going between east and west campus. I have used the blue line and I would like to see the campus shuttle increase service intervals. also the #12 Roosevelt bus service is terrible nothing new.
thats my main concern
thanks
xxx
06/27/2006
The Pink Line is inconvenient to all CTA riders trying to transfer between the Metra and UIC. It is especially inconvenient for me since the Polk stop is right across the street from my job. Since I get on the train at Jackson I now have to take the Forest Park line and walk from Damen to Polk. I am late for work everyday. I hope when the test run is over they realize that this is convenient for no one.
xxx
06/26/2006
I haven't been to UIC in a while, but I think it’s a really bad thing for the students in the west side dorms. It was bad enough on the weekends when the line that stops at Polk doesn't run.

There was really no good safe way to get between the east and west sides of campus without it. The campus shuttle only ran once an hour back then so I always took the L.

My personal opinion is that its silly for UIC to run its own bus line. They should really just pay the CTA to run shuttles on campus like most other university campuses.

I used to work for the central housing office which is on the west side and would go between there and the east side regularly on the L.

My opinion is based on information from 04 so there may be other better ways to get back and forth between the east and west sides at night.
xxx
06/26/2006
I wanted to tell u some things that i heard and saw while i was riding the pink line with my girlfriend, or as i like to call it the pepto line for Pepto-bismol. Anyway some people were asking my girlfriend and I if the pink line stoped at the racine stop and we told her that it didnt. When the train stopped at the polk stop a lot of people got on and i was overhearing a conversation of some group of lady's. In the conversation one lady said that she was feeling a lot of stress because of the new service and how its going to take longer to get to work and how also she needed to find a better route to come to work. The other thing i saw was when i was getting to clark and lake i saw tons of trains waiting to go into  the clark and lake station. We had to sit for maybe 3 minutes. As i looked to the stops at washington and Wells i could see that there was a orange line train waiting to go into the station but it had to wait for our pink line train to pass and then wait for a purpleline train to pass when it wasn't even at the crossover  at wells and lake so the orange line had to wait for our train and the purple line train to pass before it even pull in. By the time that probably happened the other trains that were behind it were also waiting to go to clark and lake.

xxx
06/26/2006
Last night I actually found a time-schedule for my train on the CTA website. None were available a the kiosk at Jackson when I asked last week. "They haven't been printed yet," I was told. Two years in preparation and one week before the inauguration of the service there were no posters on the effected trains and no new schedules available anywhere. Is that community service?

I attached the just obtained schedule for you to look at. Mind you, 54/Cermak stop that used to be called "Cicero/Berwyn" is not in Chicago, as out-of-towners might assume hopping on the train at O'Hare. It is still in ... Cicero. Therefore, the comparison of Blue Line service in the attached document is really a comparison between two towns with vastly different demographics, reputation, visibility, treatment by the media, and accompanying realities - Cicero and Oak Park.

So this morning I've taken my first ride on the "new schedule" 54/Cermak Branch of the CTA.

It was great! No bums! I'm sure they don't want to wait for the once-every-half-hour Blue Train and hop on the first available Pink Train instead. Once the Olympics come to Chicago, the bums wont' be an eyesore and a menace to the wonderful tourists riding downtown from O'Hare Airport. They will be gracing the Pink Line ... and the elevated platforms in the Loop. Being thus more contained they'll be more manageable - if the need be. At any rate, they'll be bothering the Latinas and Latinos from the West Side, not gringos from the affluent suburbs like Oak Park.

To scare the tourists getting their first glimpse of Chicago riding downtown from O'Hare the bums would have to transfer from the Pink to the Blue line. Considering that many of them don't have the kind of physical mobility conducive to climbing and descending multiple flights of stairs, I would bet very few will make it to points north of the Loop on the Blue Line. (Also, it gets more crowded and competitive on the stairs of the Loop L-trains than at any of the three ends of the Blue Line branches.) IT WORKED! Great job CTA!

I guess, this being Al Capone's Chicago (not Cicero ...:-), I should say "Thank God for small favors!"

But, I see a cloud on the horizon. This is supposed to be a 90-day trial run. What do you want to bet that it (at least the Pink part of it) is going to be a permanent deal? Another bet? How long will it take before they scrap the Douglas-Milwaukee branch of the Blue Line altogether? ...

But then again, what do I know. The gass prices being the way they are, the cost of housing and real estate taxes in "quality" neighborhoods being what they are ... maybe one of these days the powers that be will gentrify the now-Latino-Cicero the same way they did Lincoln Park.
 
I gues the good thing is money is being made - by somebody - any way you look at it. :-)
xxx

06/22/2006
I ride the 54/Cermak train from Jefferson Park to Polk Street 5 days a week and the Pink Line changes are going to mean that it’s going to take longer to get to work and longer to get home for me and it’s not only me. When I get off at Polk Street around 8:15 AM, there are around 100 other people also getting off and that’s only that one train. In the winter, I’m going to have to spend more time on an exposed platform, in the freezing cold, waiting for a train.
I don’t know how many new riders the CTA will pick up as a result of this change, but I do know that they will probably lose me as I am considering driving to work. Hopefully, other people will find alternative ways of travel and the CTA will lose money on the operation of the Pink Line and the person who came up with this idea will lose their job. Also, since nothing happens in this city without the Mayors approval, my wife and I and probably the other people standing longer in the cold, will keep him in mind the next election time.
xxx
06/21/2006
Just want to let u know pink line stinks. I relied on 54/cermak train for the last 6 years to come to work.  I take metra to lasalle. and  catch 54/cermak from lasalle to polk st. now I have to leave home half an hour before to catch my earlier metra train and catch my 54/cermak train to get to work on time.. or catch the forest park train to medical center and walk extra 20 minutes. either way it is costing me 1/2 an hour in the moring and 1/2 and hour at night...I have a 3 year old at home, I could be playing with her for the extra hour I will be spending starting this monday..
 
PINK LINE STINK
KEEP THE 54/CERMAK LINE THE WAY IT IS ..........
xxx
06/21/2006
I have gone to school/worked at UIC for the last 15 years.  I have relied on the 54/cermak blue line to safely bring me here….
I AM OUTRAGED AT THIS PINK LINE CRAP!!!!!!!! NOW, I AM BASICALLY STRANDED
xxx
06/21/2006
I am 15 years old and I live in Little Village. When I heard about the CTA service cuts I was outraged! (by the way I know they’re service cuts because it’s from 4 trains per/hour to 2 trains) I get on in Central Park in the blue line and go to the Racine stop to go to my school. With the new service I will only be able to go on the Blue Line to my school during rush hours which are from 5:30-9:30 and 2:25- 6, but sometimes there are special schedules or I’m in clubs that keep me from taking the train during rush hour! And I’m not the only one! More than half of my school is involved in extra curricular activities! Assuming that I can take it during rush hour, I have to wait 30 minutes! 30 MINUTES! That's a whole lifetime for busy people like me! Why can't CTA have 4 Pink Line trains and 4 Blue Line trains per hour? It sounds more convenient. (And believe me I don’t have to be an urban planner to figure this one out) This would be way more convenient for everyone. Just try it.
xxx
06/20/2006
I live in the community known as West Lawn. I frequently ride the Orange Line to get to school. When I heard about the new line know named the Pink Line I thought it was a good idea and that it would be convenient for everyone. Upon further research, I came to realize it was bad for ALL Chicago riders. First of all, we’re going to be paying more taxes so that the CTA can successfully run the new line. Second, riders who go to the loop and pass on the elevated platform in the loop (like me) will also be affected. The new line will create more traffic on the loop platform, which is definitely bad. Plus the elevated platform is really really old! It could be dangerous. I hope you guys can stop this. You got my support.
xxx
06/14/2006
I am a resident of the Little Village Community. My husband and I recently moved the the area to be nearer to the downtown area. One of the main reasons we purchased our home was to be near the CTA public transit system to access the downtown area - where we work.

We do not agree with your decisions to cut funding and service to one area in order to service other new areas. I cannot be at the meeting this afternoon, but I certainly will look further into this matter as it seems to me that this policy is unfair on many
levels.

At a time when our community is thriving/developing, cutting service seems like a corrupt attempt to disrupt Little Village's community development. The Blue Line is a main asset of this community. We know that without full services and convenience to downtown is key to current and future investment.

We demand full service be restored to our area and that only improved service be on the agenda now and
in the future.

We demand that Little Village residents be part of the planning process regarding CTA service to our
community.

We demand that the public be included in any decisions regarding service to our communities.

Thank you for your attention to this concern,
xxx
6/13/06
How nice for Forest Parkers.  
Come on CTA!!!!!   you will INCREASE frequency of Blue Line for Forest Park professionals and severely CUTBACK Blue line through the West Side, Little Village and  Pilsen - where thousands of WORKERS and STUDENTS depend on transportation.   Instead, we're supposed to depend on the BUS????????  Many school aged children don't travel during "rush hour."   
I thought Chciago wanted to reduce traffic issues.   Let's continually improve and develop train service 

DON'T CUT WHAT"S ALREADY THERE AND WORKING!!!!
YOU ARE NOT ACTING ON THE PUBLIC INTEREST.   CTA officials should be publicly elected!!!!!
xxx

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