A vital line of transportation will reopen in the Metro East when Blue Line MetroLink trains will resume service to the Emerson Park MetroLink Station on Monday, February 24.
Since mid-January, Blue Line trains have only operated between the Shrewsbury-Lansdowne I-44 and Forest Park-DeBaliviere Stations due to a daily single-track operation that caused delays for some customers.
According to Charles Stewart, Metro Transit COO, on Feb. 24: Effective
- Red Line trains will operate between Lambert Airport and Shiloh-Scott MetroLink Stations.
- Blue Line trains will operate between Shrewsbury-Lansdowne I-44 and Emerson Park MetroLink Stations.
- Blue Line customers will not need to transfer to a Red Line train at the Forest Park-DeBaliviere Station. Only Blue Line customers traveling east of Emerson Park Station will need to transfer to a Red Line train to continue their trip.
- Some MetroLink schedules have minor changes, customers are encouraged to doublecheck the new schedules to see if times for their MetroLink trip have changed.
- New MetroLink schedules and other details can be found at MetroStLouis.org/ServiceChange.
“Resuming Blue Line service to the Emerson Park MetroLink Station requires careful train coordination and track management to prevent serious delays,” said Stewart.
“We are working as quickly as possible to finalize these operational details so we can provide our customers with better MetroLink service starting on Feb. 24. Ensuring the safety of our customers and our MetroLink operators is our top priority.”
Blue Line MetroLink trains normally operate between the Shrewsbury-Lansdowne I-44 and Fairview Heights MetroLink Stations but have been operating limited service since mid-January due to single-track operations. Precipitation followed by cycles of thawing and freezing has contributed to some ground instability in a small area near the MetroLink tracks in Illinois, and trains are operating on a single track around the area as a precaution.
Stewart said in order to maintain consistent train schedules while providing safe operations, the MetroLink team has developed this new operating plan to provide better service for customers and reduce delays and overcrowding.