The Orange Line shows that a transit line done right doesn’t need to reinvent the wheel. Sometimes, it just needs to be good at doing exactly what it’s built for.
Aside from its service to Chicago Midway International Airport, there is nothing notable about the line — which, after understanding its history, makes sense.
Opening in late 1993 as the newest complete “L” line built from scratch, the Orange Line was introduced to Chicago to serve two purposes.
First, it was designed to provide service to neighborhoods on Chicago’s near Southwest Side, which was, at the time, a rapid transit desert. However, the second, and more important purpose, was for the Orange Line to provide a valuable connection between downtown Chicago and Midway.
On paper, both are very simple tasks. Get people from point A to point B — downtown to Midway — and in the process, provide entry or exit points for riders along the way through other stations.
Unfortunately, if my experience on the Chicago Transit Authority has taught me anything, it’s that the simplest tasks are actually the most complex. But, upon riding the Orange Line, I was pleasantly surprised to see how well it has kept to its original plan.
In fact, it does get people exactly where they need to go in a timely and efficient manner, leaving me to wonder, “Why does this line feel so different from the other CTA lines, like the Blue Line, which fails to operate as a sufficient connection between Chicago and its other large airport, O’Hare International Airport?”
The answer: The Orange Line takes a different approach to efficiency from that of the Blue or Purple Lines.
Rather than emphasizing a multi-faceted approach to efficiency, the Orange Line focuses solely on large-scale connectivity.
In other words, in trying to be both a valuable mode of transportation for the average Chicago citizen, and a designated commuter rail option for people wishing to travel to O’Hare, the Blue Line inadvertently sacrifices valuable community connections with the city it’s meant to serve. It’s long, worn and at times slow, making it unreliable as both a community connection and a travel opinion because it’s simply overextending the scope of what it can successfully accomplish.
The Orange Line, however, leans into its main appeal as a line that provides easy transportation for people traveling to and from Midway. In the process, it creates a direct link to the broader rhythm of Chicago’s transportation network, rather than just to the individual neighborhoods along its path.
Of course, that means that south of the Halsted station, the line doesn’t prioritize small-scale neighborhood integration. While at first this may seem like an issue, that’s actually its biggest strength. By narrowing its focus, the Orange Line avoids compromising on its core function — one that can be summarized by the philosophy to “Do one thing and do it well.”
George Koutrouvelis is a Medill first-year and author of “Through the Blue Tint.” He can be contacted at [email protected]. If you would like to respond publicly to this op-ed, send a Letter to the Editor to [email protected]. The views expressed in this piece do not necessarily reflect the views of all staff members of The Daily Northwestern.
