Editing Yellow Line (CTA) (section)

{{Short description|Light rapid transit line run by the Chicago Transit Authority}}
{{use mdy dates|date=June 2024}}
{{Infobox rail line
| color                           = {{rcr|CTA|Yellow}}
| name                            = Yellow Line [[File:Skokie swift icon.svg|32px]]
| image                           = Four Cars at Oakton Curve.jpg
| image_width                     = frameless{{!}}upright=1.35
| caption                         = A Yellow Line train approaches [[Oakton–Skokie station|Oakton–Skokie]]
| type                            = [[Light metro]]<ref>{{Cite press release |title=CTA celebrates 25 years of color-coding Chicago's rail lines |date=2018-02-21 |publisher=Chicago Transit Authority |url=https://www.transitchicago.com/cta-celebrates-25-years-of-color-coding-chicago%E2%80%99s-rail-lines/ |quote=For close to 50 years, the nearly five-mile line was the only nonstop shuttle service on the CTA rail system, more closely resembling a light rail operation than rapid transit.}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Sisson |first=Patrick |date=2017-09-18 |title=When Chicago's Yellow Line was the future of urban transportation |url=https://chicago.curbed.com/2017/9/18/16324488/cta-yellow-line-chicago-skokie-history |work=Curbed Chicago |quote=Data collected from the initial experiment was used to design other light rail systems across the country...}}</ref>
| system                          = [[Chicago "L"]]
| status                          = Operational
| locale                          = [[Chicago]] and [[Skokie, Illinois|Skokie]], [[Illinois]], [[United States|U.S.]]
| start                           = [[Howard (CTA station)|Howard]]
| end                             = [[Dempster–Skokie (CTA station)|Dempster–Skokie]]
| stations                        = 3
| routes                          = 
| daily_ridership                 = 1,240 (avg. weekday 2024)
| open                            = {{start date and age|1925|03|28}}
| close                           = {{end date and age|1948|03|27}}
| reopen                          = {{start date and age|1964|04|20}}
| owner                           = 
| operator                        = [[Chicago Transit Authority]]
| character                       = Elevated and at-grade
| stock                           = [[5000-series (CTA)|5000-series]]<br/>2-car trains (typical); maximum 4 cars
| linelength                      = {{convert|4.7|mi|km|abbr=on}}
| tracklength                     = 
| depot                           = [[Howard Yard]]
| tracks                          = 
| gauge                           = {{track gauge|ussg|allk=on}}
| minradius                       = 
| electrification                 = {{600 V DC|conductor=third rail}}
| speed_mph                       = 55
| speed                           = <ref>{{Cite web |last=Liederman |first=Mack |date=2023-12-13 |title=CTA To Cut Yellow Line Speeds From 55 To 35 MPH After Crash |url=http://blockclubchicago.org/2023/12/13/cta-to-cut-yellow-line-speeds-from-55-to-35-mph-after-crash/ |access-date=2023-12-31 |website=Block Club Chicago |language=en-US}}</ref>
| elevation                       = 
| map                             = {{switcher
 |{{maplink-road |from=Yellow Line (CTA).map }} Yellow Line highlighted in yellow<hr/>
 |Show interactive map
 |{{Yellow Line (CTA)}}
 |Show BSicon diagram map
}}
| map_state                       = 
}}

The '''Yellow Line''', also known as the '''Skokie Swift''', is a branch of the [[Chicago "L"]] train system in [[Chicago]], [[Illinois]]. The {{convert|4.7|mi|km|adj=on}} route runs from the [[Howard station (CTA)|Howard Terminal]] on the north side of Chicago, through the southern part of [[Evanston, Illinois|Evanston]] and to the [[Dempster–Skokie station|Dempster Terminal]] in [[Skokie, Illinois]], making one intermediate stop at [[Oakton–Skokie station|Oakton Street]] in downtown Skokie.

At Howard, Yellow Line passengers can transfer to the [[Purple Line (CTA)|Purple]] or [[Red Line (CTA)|Red Lines]] of the "L". The Yellow Line is the only "L" line that does not go to [[The Loop (CTA)|The Loop]] and is the only "L" train route that is fully [[Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990|ADA accessible]]. It is also unique in that it runs in a below-grade trench for part of its length,<ref name="yellow">{{Cite web |last=Garfield |first=Graham |title=Yellow Line |url=http://www.chicago-l.org/operations/lines/yellow.html |access-date=January 8, 2011 |website=Chicago "L".org}}</ref> even though it has no underground portions and does not run in an expressway median. It also includes grade segments and crossings at the western portion of the line. It was built using the tracks of the former [[Chicago North Shore and Milwaukee Railroad]]'s high-speed Skokie Valley Route.<ref name=yellow/>

Extending the line to [[Westfield Old Orchard|Old Orchard Mall]] in Skokie has been discussed.<ref name="Yellow Line Extension">{{Cite web |title=Yellow Line Extension |url=http://www.transitchicago.com/yelloweis/ |access-date=January 8, 2011 |website=Chicago Transit Authority}}</ref> From its original opening in 1925 until 1948, the line had several intermediate stops in Evanston and Skokie, but these stations have long been out of use and dismantled. In June 2010, however, construction began on a new station at Oakton, which opened on April 30, 2012.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2012-04-30 |title=Oakton-Skokie |url=http://www.chicago-l.org/stations/oakton.html |access-date=2022-10-28 |website=Chicago 'L'.org: Stations}}</ref>

Trains operate using the [[Bombardier Transportation|Bombardier]]-built [[5000-series (CTA)|5000-series]] railcars; each train consists of two cars. Average weekday boardings of 1,240 were reported in 2023, making it by far the least-used route in the CTA rail system.<ref name="cta-report">{{cite web |title = Annual Ridership Report &ndash; Calendar Year 2024 |publisher = Chicago Transit Authority, Ridership Analysis and Reporting|date = January 22, 2025 |url = https://www.transitchicago.com/assets/1/6/2024_Annual_Ridership_Report.pdf |accessdate = April 21, 2025 }}</ref> Until late 2009, the Yellow Line was operated with the [[3200-series (CTA)|3200-series]] cars that were specially equipped with roof boards that, until late 2004, held [[Pantograph (rail)|pantographs]] (the roof boards remain on cars 3441-3456 to this day even after they were officially reassigned to the [[Brown Line (CTA)|Brown Line]]). Occasionally, the Yellow Line borrows cars from the Red Line when short on cars.