Free bus shuttles will replace Blue Line service between Illinois Medical District and UIC-Halsted to accommodate construction work at Racine station and Morgan substation
The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) today announced weekend Blue Line service will be temporarily suspended on the Forest Park Branch starting next weekend, May 10 and continue till May 13, to accommodate construction work at the Racine Blue Line station and Morgan substation.
Beginning at 10 p.m. Friday, May 10, Blue Line trains will operate in the following two sections:
- Between O’Hare and UIC-Halsted, and
- Between Forest Park and Illinois Medical District (IMD)
Normal service will resume at 4:00 a.m. Monday, May 13.
The bus shuttle routing and bus stops are shown below.
In Summer 2023, as part of the Forest Park Branch Rebuild, crews demolished and began rebuilding the Racine main station entrance to make it fully accessible to those who use mobility devices as part of the CTA’s All Stations Accessibility Program (ASAP).
Currently only four of the 11 stations on the Forest Park Branch of the Blue Line are accessible to people who use wheelchairs or other mobility devices. As part of the Forest Park Branch Rebuild, the station house at the main Racine entrance will include a new elevator. In addition to the elevator, a longer platform and new stairs will replace the ramp that once connected the platform to street level at Racine Avenue. The main entrance of the Racine station will remain closed and is expected to re-open in late-2024, at which time the Loomis St. auxiliary entrance will close for reconstruction through 2025.
Crews are also continuing to upgrade the traction power system that provides electricity to the system, which will result in improved service reliability for the Blue Line. This work includes the construction of a new substation over the right-of-way at Morgan Street, as well as other upgrades being made to power system components in the area.
The temporary service disruption will allow for construction at the Racine station and Morgan substation to remain on time and on budget.