Cta

The CTA said it is discontinuing a bus route it operates between the Clybourn and Western Metra stations during morning rush hour after the CTA and Metra could not come to agreement about Metra paying more for the service. The No. 33 Mag Mile Express bus, which shuttles riders to Michigan Avenue, will stop running March 29, the CTA said. The bus sees about 550 riders each morning. "We negotatied with Metra, and we could not come to an agreement with them increasing their subsidy," CTA spokeswoman Tammy Chase said.

The CTA is proposing creating a second terminal to connect to the 95th Street Red Line stop. The agency has proposed building a new terminal south of 95th Street that would connect to the current stop by a pedestrian bridge across 95th Street. The CTA will unveil its plans to upgrade the Red Line stop at a public hearing 6 to 8 p.m., March 14, at Harlan High School, 9652 S. Michigan Ave. The proposal also includes an expanded platform, wider bus lanes and increased spacing between bus bays to reduce congestion, wider sidewalks and waiting areas in the bus terminal.

Woe is the Brown Line. Some riders experienced lengthy delays Wednesday morning because a defective door stalled a train near the Chicago Brown Line stop, the Tribune reported . On Tuesday, a stalled train was delayed at the Addison Brown Line stop. These incidents have capped off a lousy month for Brown Line riders, Going Public has observed. CTA spokesman Brian Steele said daytime rail tie work at the Addison Red Line stop last week and this week has affected Brown Line service.

Time to get a new line, CTA. The agency has dusted off a version of its infamous "leave early, leave late, alternate" motto for the Wells Street bridge closure project, which begins Friday night and is slated to end before morning rush hour March 11. For more than nine days, riders will be subjected to Brown and Purple Line and Loop reroutes as the Chicago Department of Transportation overhauls the Wells Street bridge and the CTA replaces tracks...

Nearly 17 percent of CTA track is under slow zones this month, which is the slowest the rail system has been in nearly five years. The slow-zone snapshot for February shows 16.7 percent of the rail system is under slow zones, which is when a train travels 35 mph or slower. The last time the CTA saw a percentage that high was in March 2008, when the CTA logged 16.9 percent slow zones. "The slow zone percentage is a dynamic number," CTA spokesman Brian Steele said. "As we repair slow zones, other slow zones can occur.

Stop, Cubs stop. Wrigleyville riders will not be able to use the CTA Addison stop for part of next week as a 15-day project to replace rail ties on tracks there continues. The project began last week, the CTA said. From 10 a.m. until 2:45 p.m. each weekday, southbound Red Line trains are operating on what is normally the northbound Red Line tracks, while northbound Red Line trains are running on a separate track and are unable to stop at Addison. Northbound riders who want to exit at Addison need to travel to Sheridan and transfer to a southbound Red Line train, the CTA said.

The CTA said Thursday it is hiring for 700 new, part-time customer service assistant positions. The job pays $12 to $14 an hour. Customer assistants will be placed across the system, the CTA said. The agency currently employs 200 of these assistants. Job fairs will be held Feb. 22 at the JLM Life Center, 2622 W. Jackson Blvd., and March 23 at Roberto Clemente Community Academy, 1147 N. Western Ave. Both fairs run from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.  Want more? Discuss this article and others on RedEye's Facebook page . 

Red Line trains will run on Green Line tracks, and CTA riders will be able to ride for free at the Garfield Green Line station, according to the plans the CTA unveiled Thursday for its spring Red Line south shutdown--one of its biggest reconstruction projects ever. As the CTA overhauls track, it will close nine Red Line stations from Cermak-Chinatown to 95th Street from May 19 through Oct. 19. The agency said it will run free shuttle buses to the Garfield Green Line stop from the 95th, 87th, 79th and 69th Street Red Line stations.

CTA riders, this is not the way to ring in the new year. Chicago police issued two separate alerts last week warning riders about recent cellphone thefts on the Red and Pink lines. Police said a group of men have been snatching electronic devices from riders on trains and platforms between 55th and 95th Streets on the Red Line since early this year. This weekend, police released a photo of a suspect they say has been using a gun to rob riders of their cellphones on the Pink Line since late last month.

Brown and Purple Line riders, your commute will get a little loopy starting next month. Part of Brown and Purple Line service will shutter for nine-day periods in March and late April as the city overhauls the Wells Street Bridge. At the same time, the CTA is rebuilding the Loop junction at Lake and Wells Streets and fixing track along Hubbard Street that suffers from slow zones. Chicago Department of Transportation commissioner Gabe Klein said Monday that CTA riders will endure a "little bit of pain.