The long-bustituted O'Hare People-Mover sees another setback:
https://www.bizjournals.com/chicago/new ... again.html
Completion of the extensions was predicted for 11/18/19, but is now pushed back to "early 2020."
Still, this seems like a moment to think about possibilities. The new station is right next to the Metra North Central line O'Hare station. Station counts show O'Hare is not a strong station today, with 111 daily riders:
https://metrarail.com/sites/default/fil ... _final.pdf
Only 6 of the 18 NC stations do significant service though. And O'Hare was 30% higher before People-Mover problems began.
What level of service would put this on the mental map of O'Hare travelers? Are there specific runs that could serve O'Hare workers based on predominant shift start and end-times? Should Galewood be added to the North Central, given the likelihood that Oak Park has a disproportionate number of air passengers compared to other areas near the line between the airport and downtown?
There are currently 9.5 trains in both directions serving this station, with the late south-bound running express from Antioch to downtown, presumably as an equipment movement. Should that express add the O'Hare stop? 6 trains run inbound in the morning, with the other 4 scattered through the rest of the day every 2-4 hours; and 6 trains run outbound in the evening, with the other 4 likewise. What would it cost to increase service to once/hour from 9:00 to 5:00, and add a rush hour back-haul?
Or is there no middle-ground in terms of attracting large-scale ridership without going all the way to a frequency that is unrealistic, say every 15 or 20 minutes?
Is there more growth potential north of O'Hare (where transit options to the airport are limited) or southeast, where populations are denser?
At any rate, I'll be interested to see how the station does once the People-Mover is back in service. Surely it retains and soon beats the 2014 numbers, given a much more convenient passage to terminal. Could it surpass Mundelein and push into the #6 position on the line even with existing service?