Buses and trains operating on a Sunday/holiday schedule on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day; Planned work to impact Green Line service this weekend
No matter your plans, CTA is the most convenient and affordable way to get to the holiday fun. We recommend allowing plenty of travel time and purchasing fares and unlimited-ride passes in advance. More information about purchasing fares is below.
Holiday Service
Leave the hassles of traffic and parking behind this holiday season and let CTA take you to either the O’Hare International Airport via the Blue Line (approx. 40 minutes from Clark/Lake) or to Midway International Airport via the Orange Line (approx. 30 minutes from the Loop).
- Tues. 12/24 (Christmas Eve) – Regular service
- Wed. 12/25 (Christmas Day) – Sunday/holiday bus and rail schedule
- Tues. 12/31 (New Year’s Eve) – Regular service for most of the day; Additional bus and rail service for New Year’s Eve Fireworks event at Navy Pier
- Wed. 1/1 (New Year’s Day) – Sunday/holiday bus and rail schedule
Full travel details are available at transitchicago.com/alerts. CTA recommends allowing extra travel time as well as purchasing fares or unlimited-ride passes ahead of time. More information about purchasing fares is below.
Event service/extra service
United Center
Extra service on the #19 United Center Express and #50 Damen routes for the following events:
- WGCI Big Jam 2019 – Fri. 12/20 at 7 p.m.
- CBS Chicago Legends – Sat. 12/21 at 5:30 p.m.
- New Jersey Devils vs. Chicago Blackhawks – Mon. 12/23 at 7:30 p.m.
Kansas City Chiefs vs. Chicago Bears at Soldier Field – Sun. 12/22 at 7:15 p.m.
Weekend Project Work to Impact Green Line Service
- Temporary suspension of service between Roosevelt and 35th-Bronzeville-IIT stations from 2 a.m. Sat. 12/21 until 4 a.m. Mon. 12/23 – More details here
- Free bus shuttle will replace ail service between Roosevelt and 35th-Bronzeville-IIT
- CTA encourages customers to plan their trip beforehand and allow for extra travel time.
- Green Line work is part of CTA’s FastTracks program to provide a faster commute and smoother ‘L’ ride.
Fare Information
Customers can add unlimited ride passes (1-day, 3-day, 7-day and 30-day) or add money to their Ventra cards for pay-per-ride via the following ways: free Ventra app, rail station Ventra vending machines, online or at nearly 900 local retailers – for locations visit ventrachicago.com.
Single-ride tickets are also available for purchase for $3 ($5 at O’Hare) at all Ventra vending machines. Single-ride tickets include up to two transfers in two hours.
In a hurry? Ventra allows riders to use Apple Pay, Android Pay or Samsung Pay, or any contactless credit or debit card, for pay-as-you-go rides ($2.25 for bus, $2.50 for train).
Service Information
Plan your trip using the Google Transit Trip Planner. Be sure to also check out CTA on Facebook or Twitter (@CTA) for system travel updates and alerts. For details about all CTA service, call 312-836-7000 or visit the CTA website at transitchicago.com.
