O'Hare station

Updated on Nov 15, 2023

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Platforms 2 island platforms Bicycle facilities Yes Opened 3 September 1984 Tracks 3		Structure type Underground Disabled access Yes Owner Chicago Transit Authority

Location 10000 West O'Hare Drive Chicago, Illinois 60666 Owned by Chicago Transit Authority Address O'Hare International Airport (ORD), Chicago, IL 60666, United States Connections Airport Transit System, Pace, Metra Similar Forest Park, Chicago‑Blue Line, Clark/Lake station, Jefferson Park Transit C, Rosemont

O'Hare is the 'L' station at the northwestern terminus of the CTA's Blue Line. It is a subway station with two island platforms serving three tracks, located at O'Hare International Airport, 17 miles (27 km) northwest of the Chicago Loop. The station is located underneath the O'Hare parking garage. Trains are scheduled to depart from O'Hare roughly every 2–7 minutes during rush-hour periods and take about 40 minutes to travel to the Loop. It is the westernmost station of the 'L' system. It is also the only CTA station without coordinates in Chicago's grid system, as O'Hare lines up with no street in the city. It is the only CTA terminal located in a subway and also is the only terminal where a premium fare applies and is the only terminal that does not directly connect to any CTA or Pace buses. It is also one of two terminals (the other being Dempster-Skokie on the Yellow Line) that does not have a yard assigned to it (the yard is located at Rosemont).

History

O'Hare station opened on September 3, 1984, as the terminus of an extension of the West-Northwest route from its former terminal at River Road. It was built to a design by the architectural firm Murphy/Jahn.

Introduction of premium fare

For the first 28 years of O'Hare station's operations, the fare passengers paid the same fare to enter it as they would at any other "L" station. The premium fare was imposed on O'Hare passengers in 2013; first (in January 2013), only passengers buying single-ride tickets had to pay the surcharge; by July of the same year, the surcharge was imposed on most other passengers (those using a Chicago Card or a Chicago Card Plus) as well.

Accident

On March 24, 2014, a train approaching the station on the middle track collided with the bumper, then jumped the tracks and crashed into the escalators, injuring 32 people. The station reopened on March 30, 2014, at 2:00 p.m.