by Aaron M. Renn
Chronicling life riding the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA)
Visit The Weekly Breakdown on the web at http://www.urbanophile.com/breakdown/
Another study ranked the CTA as the worst heavy rail system in terms of serious felony crime. However, this study did omit some systems from their analysis, notably New York and Philadelphia. [ Source: Chicago Sun-Times 6/15/98 ]
A South Shore commuter train hit a tractor trailer near Portage, Indiana, killing three passengers. The truck - which was 70,000 pounds overweight and had an illegal double trailer - was carrying improperly secured steel coils. One of those coils flew into the lead train car, killing the passengers. The truck drivers claims that he was stuck with one trailer hanging over the South Shore tracks when the gates came down on a parallel set of Conrail freight tracks. However, gates for both sets of tracks are supposed to come down in unison. The driver, who has a history of traffic violations, was cited for four infractions with total fines that could reach $2000. Apparently the trucking company he worked for is being investigated for safety problems by the state of Ohio after anonymous complaints from drivers.
Providing proof that transit agencies aren't the only goverment organizations that routinely orchestrate major boondoggles, the Tollway Authority is recalling 30,000 IPASS transponders that fail to warn motorists when their accounts have insufficient funds to pay a toll. [ Source: Chicago Tribune 6/17/98 ]
Number of Serious Felony Crimes on the CTA L System
In 1988: 4,299 (148 million riders)
In 1997: 1,839 (151 million riders)
6/15 5:15pm Metra UP-North Line train. One half of my car had no air conditioning as was about 100 degrees. Needless to say no one actually sat in there.
6/17 PM rush hour. A railroad drawbrige got stuck in the "up" position, causing major delays on Metra's Heritage Corridor and Southwest sevice. Some trains were delayed over an hour.
6/19 7:20pm Ran to Main St. L stop to try to catch the 7:19. Turns out the train was way early and I missed it by a mile.
The Weekly Breakdown is a small Internet journal devoted to the trials and tribulations of being a regular rider of the Chicago Transit Authority. I would be happy to hear about and include your experiences. Just send mail to breakdown@urbanophile.com.
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