Taking the Blue Line this week? Give yourself a little extra time. The CTA has announced three nights of single-track service on the O’Hare branch, followed by two November weekends when shuttle buses will replace trains between Jefferson Park and Harlem.
Whether you’re heading home late or catching a flight, here’s when and where service will change.
When is Blue Line service affected?
The CTA lists the following schedule. All times are local, and each overnight work window ends the following morning.
- Monday, November 2, at 10 p.m. through Tuesday, November 3, at 4 a.m.: Trains will share one track between Montrose and Harlem on the O’Hare branch. Expect a boarding change and minor delays.
- Tuesday, November 3, at 10 p.m. through Wednesday, November 4, at 4 a.m.: Trains will share one track between Jefferson Park and Harlem, with minor delays.
- Wednesday, November 4, at 10 p.m. through Thursday, November 5, at 4 a.m.: Single-track service returns between Jefferson Park and Harlem, with minor delays.
- Friday, November 6, at 10 p.m. through Monday, November 9, at 4 a.m.: Shuttle buses will replace trains between Jefferson Park and Harlem.
- Friday, November 13, at 10 p.m. through Monday, November 16, at 4 a.m.: Shuttle buses will again replace trains between Jefferson Park and Harlem.
What does this mean for your trip?
The weekend changes run continuously from Friday night through early Monday morning—not just overnight. If your trip crosses the Jefferson Park–Harlem stretch during either weekend, plan to use a shuttle bus for that portion of the journey and allow extra travel time.
These alerts concern Harlem on the O’Hare branch, not the Harlem station on the Forest Park branch. The Blue Line normally operates 24 hours a day between O’Hare and Forest Park via downtown, so it’s worth checking these changes before an early flight or a late ride home.
There’s also an elevator outage at Addison
Separately, the CTA lists the Addison Blue Line elevator as temporarily out of service, with the outage beginning Sunday, November 1, at 1:29 p.m. Its end time is listed as “TBD.”
Before heading out, check the CTA’s Blue Line page for the latest service alerts and boarding information.
