Dozens of commuters and Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) employees were injured when a Yellow Line train crashed with a diesel-powered snow removal train. The train crash happened around 10:30 AM Thursday as the Yellow Line train approached the Howard Rail Yard. According to the Chicago Fire Department, the Yellow Line train was traveling at a normal speed when it crashed into the rail equipment. The Chicago Tribune reported that the CTA-operated snowplow was on the tracks for scheduled training. At least 38 people were injured, including 31 civilians and seven CTA Employees. Twenty-three people were taken to local hospitals, with three in serious condition. Four children were among the injured, the youngest being two years old.
As of Friday morning, service along the yellow line remains suspended from Skokie to Evanston. The crash is under investigation by the NTSB. ABC 7 News reported that the CTA and other city subway systems have a safety exemption to a federally required technology called positive train control. Other passenger railroad companies like Amtrak and Metra are required to equip their trains with positive train control, which is designed to automatically prevent derailments and train-to-train collisions. In 2009, the NTSB recommended positive train control systems for all rail transit systems nationwide.
Were You Injured in a Train Crash?
Train Crash Lawsuit Information
If you or a loved one was injured in a train crash, you may be eligible for compensation. An experienced train crash attorney will investigate your case to lay the groundwork for a lawsuit against any wrongdoers who are responsible for your injuries. Since train crash and derailment cases are among the most legally complex cases to pursue, it is important to get an experienced transportation legal team involved as soon as possible because laws called “statutes of limitations,” which vary by state, may limit the amount of time you have to file a claim.
CTA Train Crash Injury News
- In September 2019, a Brown Line and Purple Line train collided during rush hour. The crash happened on the elevated tracks going from Near North to Chicago’s Loop. There were no injuries reported.
- In March 2014, a Blue Line train careened through the stop at O’Hare International Airport, causing the lead car to come to rest on the stairs near the end of the track. The train’s driver told the NTSB that she had fallen asleep at the controls after working overtime. At least 32 people were injured. The NTSB reported that emergency braking systems should have automatically stopped the train.
- At least 33 people were injured in what is referred to as the “ghost train incident” of September 2013. An empty four-car train with no conductor was sitting powered up in the Forest Park CTA repair terminal during the morning rush hour. The train traveled nearly a mile by itself, passing through several devices designed to stop trains. After accelerating to 20 miles per hour, the empty train crashed into a Blue Line train full of passengers at the Harlem stop.
- In February 2004, a Purple Line train and a Brown Line train, both traveling northbound, collided during the evening rush hour on the elevated set of tracks near the Merchandise Mart stop. Four passengers were transported to local hospitals with minor injuries.
- In August 2001, two southbound Brown Line and Purple Line CTA trains were involved in a crash caused by either an electronic or mechanical malfunction. Both trains were stopped on the elevated set of tracks near the Chicago stop at Franklin Street. The Brown Line train started moving, rounded a curve near Orleans and Oak, and rear-ended the Purple Line train. More than 170 people went to the hospital with minor injuries.
- In June 2001, two Blue Line CTA trains crashed as they were heading towards the O’Hare station. The trains were sharing the same track as maintenance crews worked on the other track when one rear-ended the other near the Addison stop along the Kennedy Expressway. Eighteen people were taken to the hospital with injuries.
- The deadliest CTA train crash happened in February 1977 involving a Ravenswood train (now known as the Brown Line) and a Lake/Dan Ryan train (now known as the Red Line). The fatal train crash happened while the Ravenswood train was waiting for an Evanston Express train (now known as the Purple Line) to leave the platform at the State/Lake stop in Chicago’s Loop. The Lake/Dan Ryan train failed to stop and struck the Ravenswood train. Several cars jackknifed and fell onto the tracks on the street below. Eleven people died and more than 100 were injured in the tragic crash.
Contact an Experienced Train Crash Attorney
Pritzker Hageman is one of the few law firms in the country with experience representing survivors of catastrophic vehicle crashes. Our award-winning legal team has won groundbreaking settlements and verdicts for our clients in some of the largest recoveries in American history. The Pritzker Hageman transportation legal team was named one of the 2024 “Best Law Firms” in the United States for our work representing injury victims in transportation lawsuits. Our transportation attorneys handle train crash injury and wrongful death cases in all 50 states. If you would like to talk to our train crash legal team about your case, please call 1-888-377-8900, text 612-261-0856, or fill out the form below.