Safety system malfunction snarls rush hour Metra trains, officials say

Service on several Metra Electric lines came to a halt during rush hour Tuesday afternoon due to computer problems with the commuter rail network’s dispatching system. The system first issued a delay announcement to passengers around 5:30 p.m. Tuesday. As of 5:40 p.m. Tuesday, the system did not yet have a timeframe for when the dispatch issues would be resolved. A Metra representative said the dispatching system was only working intermittently, making it hard to control train traffic. The agency was working to identify the cause of the issue, she said. This is a developing story. Check back for updates.  […]

At Bubble Works event in Oak Park, kids enjoy soapy science

Wonder Works Children’s Museum dropped ticket prices for the third annual Bubble Works event and that drew more people to the outdoor festival in Oak Park. Vanessa Druckman, marketing and communications manager of Wonder Works told Pioneer Press that fees of $15 for nonmembers and $5 for members helped to attract more than 1,000 attendees and the largest attendance for Bubble Works. “Our mission is to serve play-based opportunities to as many children as possible so we felt that we really needed to take a look at our prices and we radically decreased them,” she said. According to Druckman, prices […]

Glencoe looking for feedback from public to craft comprehensive plan

Glencoe officials want a new comprehensive plan on the books by the end of the year, but they are still seeking feedback on what residents want to see in the future. On July 9, the village hosted an open house at Writers Theatre allowing people to share their ideas on elements of the current draft of the comprehensive plan for the village. Since 2022, village staff members, working in coordination with the plan commission, have been developing a new comprehensive plan for the village for the first time since 1996. “It’s time to update it,” Development Services Director Taylor Baxter […]