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Originally Posted by orulz
Could Chicago possibly implement something like [Toronto's] UP Express?
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Could. Something similar was studied when the Daley administration was working on the airport express proposals. As I understand it, the engineers who ran the simulations discovered that service via the Blue Line would work almost as well.
I think there's certainly capacity available on the Milw-W. I personally think it might work better to extend a line from Bensenville yard north into O'Hare rather than use the CN (NCS) track, which CN would much rather use for freight trains. However, that would require tunneling under all those new east-west runways. Would the FAA require the entire line to be in tunnel?
In my opinion, the bigger challenge is at the downtown end. Union Station isn't convenient to CTA rail, to the office core, or to hotels. The beauty of the Block 37 scheme was that it reinforced the importance of the central Loop.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tom Servo
What are these new blue cars??? And how long have they been in service?
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The first 5000s arrived in 2009 and went into service in 2010. Sometime last year they began arriving with blue plastic interiors. Of course, the change order I'm really waiting for is to go back to two-and-one transverse seating.