Orange Line — Chicago 'L'
Midway · 16 stations · every 8 minutes at rush hour
Above: Midway station on the Orange Line · photo Jacob G. from Cleveland, United States · CC BY-SA 2.0
16
stations
36 min
end to end
8 min
at morning rush
Overnight break
service
About the Orange Line
The Orange Line is Midway Airport’s line, and one of the newest on the network (1993). It runs from Midway along the South Side, over a long elevated embankment with some of the best skyline views on the ‘L’, and around the Loop.
Midway to the Loop takes about 25 minutes for the standard $2.50 fare — unlike O’Hare, there is no airport surcharge here.
The Orange Line has 16 stations and takes about 36 minutes end to end. 13 of its stations are step-free, and it meets another ‘L’ line at 8 of them.
Every Orange Line station, in order
Times are the cumulative journey from the first station, using the CTA timetable. A gold dot marks a station where you can change to another line.
How often Orange Line trains run
| When | Mon–Fri | Saturday | Sunday |
|---|---|---|---|
| Early morning 4:00–6:30 am | 12 min | 15 min | 15 min |
| Morning rush 6:30–9:30 am | 8 min | 10 min | 12 min |
| Midday 9:30 am–3:00 pm | 8 min | 10 min | 10 min |
| Afternoon rush 3:00–7:00 pm | 8 min | 10 min | 10 min |
| Evening 7:00–10:00 pm | 12 min | 10 min | 10 min |
| Late night 10:00 pm–4:00 am | 15 min | 10 min | 14 min |
Typical gap between trains in one direction, worked out from CTA's published timetable. Real gaps vary.
First and last Orange Line train
| Station | Mon–Fri | Saturday | Sunday |
|---|---|---|---|
| Midway | 3:30 am – 1:05 am | 4:00 am – 1:05 am | 4:30 am – 1:05 am |
| Pulaski | 24 h | 4:02 am – 2:00 am | 4:32 am – 2:00 am |
| Kedzie | 3:35 am – 1:58 am | 4:05 am – 1:58 am | 4:35 am – 1:58 am |
| Western | 3:37 am – 1:56 am | 4:07 am – 1:56 am | 4:37 am – 1:56 am |
| 35th/Archer | 3:41 am – 1:51 am | 4:11 am – 1:51 am | 4:41 am – 1:51 am |
| Ashland | 3:44 am – 1:49 am | 4:14 am – 1:49 am | 4:44 am – 1:49 am |
| Halsted | 3:46 am – 1:47 am | 4:16 am – 1:47 am | 4:46 am – 1:47 am |
| Roosevelt | 3:51 am – 1:43 am | 4:21 am – 1:43 am | 4:51 am – 1:43 am |
| Harold Washington Library-State/Van Buren | 3:55 am – 1:30 am | 4:25 am – 1:30 am | 4:55 am – 1:30 am |
| LaSalle/Van Buren | 3:55 am – 1:30 am | 4:25 am – 1:30 am | 4:55 am – 1:30 am |
| Quincy/Wells | 3:57 am – 1:32 am | 4:27 am – 1:32 am | 4:57 am – 1:32 am |
| Washington/Wells | 3:58 am – 1:33 am | 4:28 am – 1:33 am | 4:58 am – 1:33 am |
| Clark/Lake | 4:01 am – 1:36 am | 4:31 am – 1:36 am | 5:01 am – 1:36 am |
| Washington/Wabash | 4:03 am – 1:38 am | 4:33 am – 1:38 am | 5:03 am – 1:38 am |
| Adams/Wabash | 4:04 am – 1:39 am | 4:34 am – 1:39 am | 5:04 am – 1:39 am |
Times are departures from that station, taken from CTA's timetable, and are the window in each direction combined.
Where you can change lines
Questions about the Orange Line
16 stations, running Midway. End to end it takes about 36 minutes.
On weekdays the first trains leave around 3:30 am and the last around 1:58 am, varying by station — the further along the line, the later the last train passes. There is no overnight service; if you are out late, the Red and Blue lines run 24 hours. First and last train at every station.
$2.50, the same as every other ‘L’ line and the same however far you travel. Transfers to another line are free within two hours.
At 8 stations, including Roosevelt, Harold Washington Library-State/Van Buren, LaSalle/Van Buren, Quincy/Wells, Washington/Wells, Clark/Lake…. At all of them the change is inside the station: walk across, no second tap and no extra fare.
State/Lake closed on 5 January 2026 to be rebuilt as a fully accessible station, and is due to reopen in 2029. Trains pass through without stopping. Use Washington/Wabash or Clark/Lake instead — both are step-free and both are a short walk away.