Red Line (CTA)

Red Line
A Red Line train of 5000-series cars at Garfield station
Overview
Status	Operational
Locale	Chicago, Illinois, United States
Termini	Howard 95th/Dan Ryan
Stations	33 (4 under construction)
Service
Type	Rapid transit
System	Chicago "L"
Operator	Chicago Transit Authority
Depot(s)	Howard Yard, 98th Yard
Rolling stock	5000-series 8-car trains (typical, maximum)
Daily ridership	114,598 (avg. weekday 2024)
History
Opened	Oldest section: May 31, 1900 (1900-05-31) Current operation: February 21, 1993 (1993-02-21)
Technical
Line length	21.8 mi (35.1 km) (5.6 mi (9.0 km) under construction)
Character	Embankment, elevated, subway, and expressway median
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Electrification	Third rail, 600 V DC
Route map Red Line highlighted in red Purple to Linden Yellow to Dempster–Skokie Evanston Chicago border Howard ■■ Jarvis Morse Loyola Granville Thorndale Bryn Mawr Berwyn Argyle Lawrence Wilson ■ Sheridan Addison Brown to Kimball Belmont ■■ ■■ Wellington ■■ Diversey Fullerton ■■ ■■ Armitage North/​Clybourn Purple & Brown to Loop Clark/​Division Chicago Grand Chicago River ■■■■■ State/​Lake reopening 2029 Blue to O'Hare  │ Lake ■ Washington │ Washington closed ■ Monroe │ Monroe ■ Jackson │ Jackson ■■■■ Library Blue to Forest Park Harrison Roosevelt ■■ Orange to Midway  Green to Ashland/​63rd or Cottage Grove Cermak–Chinatown I-55 I-90 / I-94 Sox–35th 47th Garfield Green to Ashland/​63rd 63rd I-90 69th 79th 87th 95th/​Dan Ryan Red Line Extension I-94   I-57 103rd 111th Michigan South Shore Line to Millennium Station 130th South Shore Line to Dyer or South Bend Two lines sharing tracks Multiple lines sharing tracks Bus connections at all stations except Jarvis.

The Red Line is a rapid transit line in Chicago, run by the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) as part of the Chicago "L" system. It is the busiest line on the "L" system, with nearly 40 million rides in 2024.

The route is 21.8 miles (35.1 km) long with a total of 33 stations. It runs elevated from the Howard station in the Rogers Park neighborhood on the North Side, through the State Street subway on the Near North Side, Downtown, and the South Loop, and then through the Dan Ryan Expressway median to 95th/Dan Ryan in the Roseland neighborhood on the South Side.

Together with the Blue Line, the Red Line runs 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, making Chicago, New York City, and Copenhagen, the only three cities in the world that operate train service 24 hours a day throughout their city limits.

The CTA is currently building an extension of the Red Line, adding 5.6 miles (9.0 km) and four new stations which would extend the line from 95th Street to 130th Street, making the Red Line approximately 31 miles in length with 37 stations. In December 2022, the Chicago City Council approved the creation of a district that will send approximately $1 billion in tax revenue for the extension of the Red Line south of 95th Street to 130th Street.