CTA offers livestream of Blue Line platform conditions to help commuters plan their trips

CHICAGO - Facing a barrage of complaints about service delays, the Chicago Transit Authority this week unveiled a live video feed showing platform conditions during rush hour at several busy Blue Line stations.

"Through our Meeting the Moment action plan, we’ve been working to provide more consistent and reliable bus and rail service, as well as expand and improve trip planning and communication tools for customers," CTA President Dorval R. Carter Jr., said in a statement. "These new livestreams are part of CTA’s larger efforts to provide tools to help CTA customers plan and manage their commutes."

The live feed shows platform conditions at the Logan Square, California, Western, Damen, Division and Chicago stops from 7 to 10 a.m., according to the CTA.

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The CTA says the feed is one of several new initiatives intended to improve service, including adding extra trains to the Blue Line, assigning more personnel to closely monitor rush-hour service and making frequent platform announcements "to let customers waiting on platforms know real-time status, the location of next trains and when extra trains have been deployed."

A recent WBEZ survey of CTA riders found many had experienced delays. Nearly nine out of 10 riders said they’d experienced a service delay in the last 30 days, according the survey, which was distributed in November 2022, with about 2,000 people responding.

The CTA — the second-largest transit system in the United States — spent 2022 trying to bounce back from a slew of challenges: the pandemic wiping out ridership in transit systems across the country, prompting shortages of bus and train operators and boosting a massive culture shift toward remote work.

To view the live video, go to transitchicago.com/blue-line-video.