CTA to Suspend Loop Elevated Service This Weekend for Track Maintenance as Agency Launches Safety and Bus Efforts

The CTA will suspend Loop elevated train service this weekend to perform track maintenance, WTTW News reported. According to an announcement from the CTA, the weekend project is scheduled to revitalize key track and interlocking infrastructure at the Loop and Lake Junction.

In addition to the weekend track maintenance, the CTA is asking riders for input on its bus service. Block Club Chicago reported that the CTA is gathering public input on bus service through a new survey and events, while the Chicago Sun-Times noted that the agency wants rider feedback to help improve bus service. For travelers taking cabs instead of buses or trains, ABC7 Chicago reported that a Chicago taxi fuel surcharge has taken effect due to high gas prices.

Beyond city routes, Chicago transit leaders are looking to NITA to strengthen regional service, Passenger Transport reported. According to Chronicle Media, a NITA outreach event spotlighted service improvement planning and real estate development.

Safety on the transit system also remains a focus for the agency. While Passenger Transport reported that transit safety requires more than policies and procedures, the CTA announced that it is continuing the implementation of its security enhancement strategy through the initiation of a Safe Ride Specialist Program.

The rollout of the Safe Ride Specialist Program comes as authorities prosecute criminal cases involving the CTA system. The Chicago Sun-Times reported that a woman was accused of shoving a 73-year-old CTA passenger off a Loop bus, and CBS News reported that the woman has been charged with pushing and shoving the 73-year-old man off the CTA bus in the Loop in downtown Chicago. In a separate case, CWB Chicago reported that a man has been charged with attempted murder in a Jefferson Park Blue Line shooting.