Saturday, January 24, 2009

Postcard : Chicago's Famed El Train



The 'L' (variously, and sometimes, styled "L", El, EL, or L) is a rapid transit system that serves the city of Chicago in the United States. It is operated by the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA), and is the third busiest rail mass transit system in the United States, behind New York City's New York City Subway, and Washington, D.C.'s Metrorail. It also is one of the few mass-transit systems offering 24 hour service in the U.S. The oldest section of the 'L' dates from 1892 making it the second oldest rapid transit system in the Americas after New York (where the oldest operating elevated sections date to the 1880s). It has been credited with helping create the densely built-up downtown that is one of Chicago's distinguishing features.Chicago's rapid transit system currently consists of eight principal routes. Since 1993 'L' lines have been identified by color, although older route names survive to some extent in CTA publications and popular usage to distinguish branches of longer lines.

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