[flickr]photo:2720457290[/flickr]
1977 derailment at Wabash and Lake – photo by Mark Llanuza
[This piece also ran in Time Out Chicago magazine.]
Q: Since I’ve switched from the straight-shot Red Line to the winding Brown Line, where you often feel like you’re about to ride right off the rails (and right into a nearby condo building), I’ve been wondering: At what speed would El trains hitting sharp curves come off the tracks?
A: A CTA train’s extremely low center of gravity and speed limits allow it to safely navigate the El’s many curves, according to spokeswoman Catherine Hosinski. As a train goes around a bend, like the tight S-curve on the Brown and Purple Lines just north of the Merchandise Mart, the car may seem to sway at an impossible angle, but most of the weight is still directed straight down, Hosinski says. This overcomes centrifugal force and keeps the wheels on the rails. “Also, a train’s speed through each curve is limited by the automated train control system,” she says. “This system enforces a maximum train speed that’s much lower than the speed that could cause a train to leave the rails.”
Despite Hosinski’s assurances that modern CTA cars are safe, over the years the CTA has suffered a number of train plunges (the Green Line in 1966 and ’72). A 1977 incident killed 11: Two trains collided at the Wabash Avenue and Lake Street curve, causing one train to fall off the tracks. “I’m not an apologist for the CTA, but over 10 billion people have ridden the system in its 120-year history and you’re talking about a few dozen fatalities,” says local transit authority Greg Borzo, author of The Chicago “L”, a history of the system [and a sponsor of this blog]. “That’s a pretty good safety record.” Soon after Borzo soothed our nerves, news broke that the CTA recently purchased hundreds of new 5000-series rail cars whose faulty craftsmanship could have led to derailments.
No answer to the question then? What speed?
That would depend on many variables: the radius of the curve, how many people are in the car, weather conditions, etc., so it would be impossible for the CTA to provide a particular number. I did ask Catherine to provide the speed limit for a particular location, say the curve north of the Merchandise Mart, but she wasn’t able to get back to me by press time. I’ll keep an eye out for speed limit signs next time I’m riding this stretch.
For the speed limit, this should be on the CTA’s very technical slow zones map. Found it. At the S-curve north of Merchandise Mart, the speed limit is 15 MPH. http://www.transitchicago.com/assets/1/rail_slow_zone_maps/slzm_03_09_12.pdf
True enough.
dang, that’s a better safety record than the airlines.
And trains have been around longer, too. 😉
I think they are going to film a movie at the Wilson L-stop this summer with a staged train derailment. My Alderman said something to that effect at the last ward meeting. Aliens and/or gravity will get you every time.
That sounds cool! The ‘L’ is featured in so many movies. “The Chicago ‘L'” author Greg Borzo has a flyer that lists the best ones. I’ll see if I can get it from Greg.
The Chicago Film Office doesn’t have any “active” films listed right now. http://www.explorechicago.org/city/en/supporting_narrative/events___special_events/events/mose/chicago_film_office15.html
I’ll try and find out. It could be a TV-movie. In other Wilson related news, the area has been crawling with surveyors the past few weeks making measurements for…something.