The Latest Breaking News from CTA

Brushing aside criticism that he has remained silent since the crash, CTA President Dorval Carter said National Transportation Safety Board rules prohibit him from commenting on the investigation. But he tried to allay speculation about a potential design flaw.

The operator of a Chicago commuter train that collided with snow-removal equipment last month knew the machine would be on the line that day but wasn’t aware of its exact location, according to a preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board released Tuesday

The National Transportation Safety Board is focusing on CTA rail signals, railcar brakes and track conditions as it tries to determine why the train couldn’t avoid hitting the snowplow near the Howard Street station.

Over strong objection from the Fraternal Order of Police and its Council allies, the committee voted to reject an arbitrator’s ruling that would allow officers accused of serious wrongdoing to bypass the Police Board and hold proceedings behind closed doors.

The transit agencies say the plan aims to bus service including shorter travel times and more consistency, but some transit advocates say it lacks specifics on which changes will be implemented and when.

The ban will affect main roads from 3 to 7 a.m. until April 1.

It happened in the 100 block of North Clark Street about 3:30 a.m.

A reopening date for the line, which handles about 1,500 commuters every weekday, hasn’t been set. A southbound train struck a snow plow on tracks near the Howard stop.

The CTA holiday train returned Friday afternoon, bringing thousands of lights and Santa’s sleigh to the city’s Green and Orange Line tracks.

Chicago city transit officials have said L service is getting back on track. Hundreds of riders who answered a WBEZ survey aren’t so sure.

One was filed on behalf of Zubair Hussain, who was knocked unconscious by the impact and hospitalized for three days, his lawyers said.