CTA Yellow Line train operator faces firing under rules on alcohol use — but agency can't take action yet

The Chicago Transit Authority says it has been unable to discipline a train operator who crashed last November, then tested positive for elevated blood-alcohol levels, because the employee remains off the job due to his injuries.

But the employee likely faces automatic dismissal if and when he returns to work under CTA employment rules.

The transit authority explained its employee alcohol-use policy to the Sun-Times after a federal report revealed the employee had a blood-alcohol content of 0.048%. Meanwhile, a passenger and his lawyer expressed frustration with the months-long delay in this information being made public.

"In accordance with applicable federal regulations as well as CTA’s policies and guidelines, and based on the circumstances, employees who test positive are subject to discipline, up to and including discharge," the CTA wrote in a statement.

"The operator, in this case, is currently on inactive status due to his injuries from the crash. Employment action, if any, will occur upon his return to active status."

Authorities have said the operator was piloting the train south toward the Howard Street station the morning of the Nov. 16, 2023, crash, when, while taking a blind turn near the Howard CTA depot, he found himself barreling toward a slow-moving snowplow unit using the same tracks for a training exercise. The operator slammed on the emergency brakes, but the train still crashed into the plow. Nineteen people were hospitalized.

According to the CTA's contract with the operators union, the Yellow Line operator could face automatic dismissal under two provisions.

First, the operator's blood-alcohol level was measured above 0.04% after a crash that resulted in injuries. That qualifies the employee to be dismissed automatically irrespective of work experience.

Second, even if the operator had not crashed, he faces automatic firing because he had been on the job for less than three years when his blood-alcohol level was measured above 0.04%.

The operator was hired by the CTA in February 2021 to clean buses, according to National Transportation Safety Board records. He began operating trains on his own on Aug. 4, 2023, less than four months before the crash.

The operator's lawyer declined to comment. A union representative did not reply to messages seeking comment.

Stephen Helmer, who was on the train with his family during the crash, said it was "troubling" to learn weeks before the anniversary of the crash about the employee's alleged alcohol use.

"Now we have new information that's been basically kept from all of us, all of the victims of this accident, for many months. Trying to process that is very difficult," said Helmer, who is suing the CTA.

The CTA has said it is prohibited by NTSB rules from discussing details of the ongoing investigation.

But Helmer's attorney, Rick Pullano, said "there has to be a better way" to share information. The CTA has "been so callous as to how they've handled the facts and circumstances," he said.

The attorney criticized CTA's alcohol and drug deterrence program for allegedly giving the operator "the sense he'll never be tested."

The CTA says it performs between 350 and 450 random drug and alcohol tests of its operators each month. But the CTA operator had never been tested in that system, according to the agency.

According to CTA policy, which must conform with federal standards set by the U.S. Department of Transportation, rail operators face disciplinary action any time their blood-alcohol level is measured above 0.02%, whether they're involved in a crash or not.

If an employee has more than three years of experience, the employee is subject to a 16-week suspension without pay for their first violation. A second violation results in termination, according to CTA rules. Employees with less than three years on the job face automatic termination.

Employees also face automatic termination if they are involved in a serious crash — meaning that someone is hurt or property is damaged — irrespective of work experience.

CTA rules also cover employees who test with a blood-alcohol level under the 0.04% federal limit.

Employees with a blood-alcohol level between 0.02% and 0.039% are given a one-day suspension without pay, according to agency rules. A level of 0.02% or below is considered "negative," and no disciplinary action is taken.

Federal investigators with the NTSB have not completed their final report on the crash, which could take up to another year to complete. The NTSB has said it is investigating brake-stopping distances and whether organic material on the track caused the wheels to slip while braking.

The CTA shut down the Yellow Line for more than a month after the crash, reopening the route after lowering the train speed limit from 55 mph to 35 mph around the bend where the crash occurred.

When it was reported Oct. 24 the agency determined the operator's blood-alcohol level was above the federal limit, the NTSB again said the operator’s actions were not a factor in the crash.

Pullano, the attorney, doesn't buy it.

"To tell Stephen and his family, [who were on the train] with 2-year-olds, that it had had no impact on his ability to stop — it doesn't fly," Pullano said.