Transit Systems
The Chicago Transit Authority, or CTA, operates the second largest public transportation system in the United States (to New York's Metropolitan Transportation Authority) and covers the City of Chicago and 40 surrounding suburbs. The CTA operates 24 hours a day and, on an average weekday, 1.6 million rides are taken on the CTA.
CTA has approximately 2,000 buses that operate over 152 routes and 2,273 route miles (3,658 km). Buses provide about 1 million passenger trips a day and serve more than 12,000 posted bus stops. CTA's 1,190 rapid transit cars operate eight routes and 222 miles (357 km) of track. CTA trains provide about 745,000 customer trips each day and serve 144 stations in Chicago, Evanston, Skokie, Wilmette, Rosemont, Forest Park, Oak Park, and Cicero. The rapid transit system is known as the "Chicago 'L'" or variations of 'L', "El", or "el" to Chicagoans.
Chicago is one of the few cities in the United States that provides rapid transit service to two major airports. From the downtown area, the CTA's Blue Line takes riders to O'Hare International Airport in about 40 minutes, and the Orange Line takes customers to Chicago Midway International Airport in about 30 minutes from the Loop.
Read more about this topic: Transportation In Chicago
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