O'Hare station train crash facts for kids
On March 24, 2014, a Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) Blue Line passenger train overran the bumper at the station at the O'Hare International Airport, injuring 34 people. The accident caused $11,196,796 in damage.
A spokesman stated that it was likely that the train entered the station at too high a speed. It was later estimated that the train entered the station at 25 to 26 miles per hour (40 to 42 km/h), which was not an excessive speed. At least 50 firefighters and paramedics attended the accident.
The cause of the accident was that the train operator, 25-year-old Brittney Tysheka Haywood, fell asleep at the controls.
As a direct consequence of the accident, the CTA reduced the speed limit into the O'Hare station from 25 miles per hour (40 km/h) to 15 miles per hour (24 km/h). The area of the speed limit was also extended away from the station.
