Type Commuter Rail 0.0 Chicago Union Station Operator BNSF Railway | System Metra Line length 60,350 m Stations 26 | |
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Daily ridership 64,800 (Avg. Weekday 2014) Owner BNSF Railway (Leased to Metra) Track gauge 4 ft 8 ⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge Terminis Aurora Transportation Center, Chicago Union Station | ||
The BNSF Railway Line is a Metra commuter rail line operated by the BNSF Railway in Chicago and its surrounding suburbs. In 2010, the BNSF Railway Line continued to have the highest weekday ridership (average 64,600) of the 11 Metra lines. (Metra does not refer to its lines by particular colors, but the timetable accents for the BNSF line are "Cascade Green," like the paint of the Burlington Northern Railroad.) In April 2014, the public timetable (published March 11, 2012) showed 47 trains leaving Chicago each weekday, of which 31 run to Aurora. Of the 16 trains that do not reach Aurora, 3 terminate at Westmont, 1 at Naperville, 5 at Route 59, 5 at Fairview Avenue, 1 at Brookfield, and 1 at Downers Grove-Main St. During rush hours, many trains run express to Downers Grove and make all stops to Aurora.
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The east end is Union Station in downtown Chicago. The line traverses Chicago and its western and far western suburbs to Aurora. BNSF Railway operates it under a "purchase of service agreement" with Metra; management and crews are BNSF employees and Metra owns the equipment. The June 2007 timetable shows a 70 mph maximum allowed speed for passenger trains.
Metra has studied the feasibility of extending the line beyond Aurora, possibly as far as Plano, Illinois.
History
The railroad between Chicago and Aurora was constructed in 1864 by the Chicago and Aurora Railroad, which later merged into the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad. The CB&Q operated the commuter service until the railroad became part of the Burlington Northern in 1970. Burlington Northern merged with the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway in 1995 and the name of the railroad became Burlington Northern Santa Fe. It later changed its name to the abbreviation, BNSF.
With three tracks, fast and frequent Amtrak and Metra passenger trains, and BNSF freight trains, the line nicknamed the "race track" is a favorite of rail fans.
The Clyde station at South Austin Boulevard and West 29th Street in Cicero was closed on April 1, 2007 due to low ridership and its dilapidation. In the months before its closure, it was used by about 50 passengers a day.
Rolling stock
The BNSF Railway's locomotive fleet consists mainly of the EMD F40PHM-2, with some EMD F40PH locomotives. Until 2012, MPI MP36PH-3S locomotives also operated on the line, however, they were all reassigned to the Milwaukee lines, the North Central Service and the Rock Island District due to operating difficulties.