These arriving by CTA train at O’Hare Airport in the course of overnight hours have to have to supply proof they have “business” there to be permitted to enter, officials stated.
Chicago police officers will be asking any person arriving at the airport by way of the Blue Line among ten p.m. and four a.m. for “proof of airport organization,” such as an airline boarding pass or an employee badge, the Chicago Division of Aviation stated in a statement.
These who cannot supply proof will be turned away.
“In order to supply a safe atmosphere at O’Hare International Airport, CDA safety personnel function with the Chicago Police Division to enforce current laws, which make clear that it is unlawful to be at Chicago’s airports without having any airport organization,” the airport agency stated.
The Aviation Division emphasized that the policy has been in location given that 2020. As a safe place, O’Hare does not enable members of the public to be at the airport unless they are flying in or out or function there.
It was unclear whether or not the policy applied to individuals selecting up or dropping off travelers at the airport, but the agency stated “all CTA buyers exiting the Blue Line station” in the course of these hours would be asked to show proof of organization.
But enforcement of that policy appeared to have waned earlier in the winter prior to it was provided further focus in current months following the quantity of unhoused individuals in search of shelter at the airport drew national focus and criticism.
In February, Mayor Lori Lightfoot acknowledged the seriousness of the problem but argued that conservative media had blown the challenge out of proportion.
“We have taken and will continue to take the actions that are essential to move individuals out of the airports,” she stated then. “The airports are a incredibly unique location than on the street beneath an underpass.”
Haymarket Center’s O’Hare Outreach system, which connects these experiencing homelessness and in search of shelter at the airport with sources, has stated that even though the quantity of individuals in search of shelter at O’Hare in the winter months constantly increases, the boost has been larger lately.
“We’re gonna continue inside the bounds of the law to do what is essential to supply these people with assistance — but elsewhere. They cannot be in our airports,” the mayor stated.
Even so, the airport agency stated enforcement of the policy was renewed for the reason that the Blue Line resumed 24-hour service to and from the airport final month. Previously, trains did not run from O’Hare to the Rosemont station from midnight to four a.m., a policy which began in the course of the pandemic.
An improved police presence could be observed at the airport in February. Which includes a cadre of officers stationed at the O’Hare Blue Line cease inside the airport. They have been observed asking individuals coming into the airport by way of the Blue Line to show their airline tickets or function IDs, even prior to ten p.m.