Station hopping shuffler
Since I was looking for this Chicago Transit Authority citation recently, I’m posting it here so I can find it easier in the future. Proper usage is important, especially if you know there is a proper usage.
As far as I could tell, Grid Chicago didn’t actually make this a blog post, but their Twitter conversation was picked up by a few outlets, including the Chicago Tribune:
You may have wondered, as you climb aboard a CTA train: Are you about to ride the “El” or the “L”?
Grid Chicago, a blog devoted to energy-conscious transit issues in the city, asked on its Twitter feed last week which usage people prefer — the single “L” or the longer “El.”
Among the responses came one from the official CTA Twitter account:
.@gridchicago ‘L’ is correct use, dates back >120 yrs in Chgo; “el” is generic abbrev. for “elevated,” ‘L’ applies to whole system. #settled
— cta (@cta) February 9, 2012
That’s not to say the “El” isn’t used, despite the fact that only parts of the city’s rail system are elevated. Time Out Chicago, a publication devoted to covering arts and entertainment in the city, is among those preferring “El.”
“El” can also be found in some book references. For instance, in his 1947 collection “The Neon Wilderness,” Chicago author Nelson Algren refers repeatedly to the “El.”
“She put her hat on the dresser and sat by the window, looking out at the night-fuming neon all the way down Congress to the El,” Algren writes at one point. Though, in fairness, some credit (blame?) East Coast editors for changing the usage.
(click here to continue reading Chicago train system: Is it the L or the El? – Chicago Tribune.)
I’ve had a few of my photos published by Grid Chicago – they are good people, and have a good mission. Check ’em out…