We want members of the UChicago community to be as safe as possible this fall. Below are resources on how to safely navigate CTA, Metra, rideshare programs, and biking in the city.
Traveling in Chicago
The Chicago Transit Authority is following local and state health guidelines during the COVID-19 pandemic. They encourage the proper strategies for slowing spread, such as following the state mandate for requiring face masks.
CTA has done continuous service as much as possible, added buses to address crowding on routes, put up signage for COVID-19 policies and standards, and employed camera crowd monitoring at high-density stops.
Approximate passenger limits are: 15 people for normal-length buses, 22 for double-length buses and train cars. Avoid sitting in seats next to someone else: make space of at least one seat, and keep a row’s worth of distance between other riders.
The CTA has a Ridership Information Dashboard live for buses, which will allow people to see the historic crowding trend in each bus at each hour of the day. It is updated weekly, and it has three separate pages for weekdays, Saturdays, and Sundays. A version for CTA trains will become available in the future.
Metra is committed to safe practices during the COVID-19 pandemic and expects its personnel and passengers to adhere to CDC guidelines. They require employees and passengers to wear face coverings throughout the ride and to physically distance at the station and in the cars.
Metra works hard to ensure that rides are readily available for customers. Their rail cars have all been deep-cleaned and are disinfected daily, stations are cleaned multiple times per day, additional hand sanitizer stations have been installed in cars, and high-quality air filters and dampers are included within each coach car. They urge riders to have at least one seat between them on either floor. As ridership increases, Metra is determined to add more cars to ensure physical distancing is possible.
They have debuted alternate weekday schedules for each of their rail lines. Weekend schedules have been changed to the Sunday/Holiday schedules for both days, which can be found here. Note that Metra has also suspended Saturday service on the SouthWest Service Line and on the Blue Island Branch of the Metra Electric Line.
Like the CTA, Metra has implemented a Ridership Dashboard for each of their rail lines, allowing riders to see crowding trends in each car for a five-day weekday period. The tool, which is in Beta, is updated weekly and may also be updated based on feedback and new information.
