Chicago (CBS) – Video circulating online shows a man climbing on top of a CTA Red Line train as it travels down the Dan Ryan Expressway.
Chicago Transit Authority officials said they are investigating the incident. Meanwhile, transportation experts said it’s worrisome — and for more reasons than the obvious safety-related ones.
Experts said such videos send a message of chaos — which is not good for Chicago’s public transportation system.
CTA trains travel at speeds up to 55 mph. It is unclear how fast the Red Line car was moving when it encountered a man train near the 69th Street stop on the Red Line.
Police dispatch audio indicates the man was riding on the roof of a southbound train, and the operator was not aware of it at the time. The incident happened last week, and the video was posted online.
“You see a lot of things on the Red Line, but that one took the cake,” said witness David Jackson.
Jackson said he was in the same train car as the subway surfers.
“The train was flying, so we were hoping it wouldn’t fall between the two cars and onto the track,” he said. “Glad he didn’t kill himself, because it could have been much worse.”
CBS 2 reached out to CTA to see how they handled the incident. A spokesperson said: “Actions like this are dangerous and irresponsible. CTA will work with the Chicago Police Department to try to identify the individual engaged in this illegal activity.”
“It creates an image – a sense of chaos on the trains; the perception that anything is going to happen on the train,” said transportation expert and DePaul University professor Dr. Joe Schwieterman, “and that’s really unfortunate.”
Schwitterman said such conduct is dangerous and more than illegal.
“It goes without saying that this is illegal,” Schwieterman said. “This is not only a danger to the people on that train having an emergency, but also to motorists who may be seeing this person.”
This was not the first time such behavior was captured on video.
Last year, someone spotted riding a CTA train outside took credit for posting their joyride online. A 2019 clip shows a man lying on a Brown Line train headed for the Loop.
“It’s extremely risky for a person on the roof, but we have problems with unruly passengers on our rapid transit lines and so on that are causing massive delays in the system,” Schwieterman said. “So in addition to their safety, there’s also a service quality dimension to this which is unfortunate for people who rely on the train.”
Schwitterman said this kind of behavior should be reported – and that such conduct should not be tolerated.
“People need to know that when an incident occurs, they see it on the train platform, notify CTA personnel immediately – because certainly they have radio communications and they can stop that train,” Schwitterman said. “We see turnstile jumping. It’s awkward to report it. But when you don’t do that, things can happen that can pose real physical risks.”
New York subway surfing crisis
In New York City, there were hundreds of sightings of subway surfers last year. Subway surfing there has become so dangerous that young voices are now part of an awareness campaign, urging teens to stay inside.
Last month in New York CityA teenager died while surfing an elevated section of the F train line in Brooklyn – which has been a trend for some time.
This came four months after New York City announced a campaign To stop subway surfing As young people prepared to go back to school. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority in New York launched a new advertising campaign titled “Ride Inside, Stay Alive”.
“The consequences of these actions are not only taking lives, but ruining lives,” New York City Mayor Eric Adams said in September.
Norma Nazario knows the consequences Mayor Adams was talking about. His 15 year old son, Zachary NazarioDied while surfing on a subway train in February last year.
“Something needs to be done,” Nazario said. told CBS 2 in New York,
Zackary, a high school freshman, was surfing on the Manhattan-bound J train that was crossing the Williamsburg Bridge from Brooklyn to Manhattan. His head hit a beam on the bridge – and he fell onto the tracks and was hit by another train.
“I couldn’t believe it,” Nazario said.
There have been several other incidents in which people – often teenagers – fell from moving trains and died while subway surfing in New York.
Now, public transportation and city leaders there have also called on social media companies to remove train surfing videos from their platforms — accusing the apps of glorifying the dangerous stunt.
“National action is needed on how social media is influencing our children’s behavior and norms,” Mayor Adams said in September.
CTA spokespersons in Chicago again said they are working with Chicago Police regarding the incident on the Reed Line. Police have not shared any more information than this.
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