Metra is the primary commuter rail system in the Chicago metropolitan area serving the city of Chicago and its surrounding suburbs via the Union Pacific Railroad, BNSF Railway, and other railroads. The system operates 243 stations on 11 rail lines. It is the fourth busiest commuter rail system in the United States by ridership and the largest and busiest commuter rail system outside the New York City metropolitan area. In 2023, the system had a ridership of 31,894,900, or about 168,600 per weekday as of the third quarter of 2024. The estimated busiest day for Metra ridership occurred on November 4, 2016—the day of the Chicago Cubs 2016 World Series victory rally, with a record 460,000+ passengers.
Pace is the suburban bus and regional paratransit division of the Regional Transportation Authority serving the Chicago metropolitan area. It was created in 1983 by the RTA Act, which established the formula that provides funding to the CTA, Metra, and Pace. The various agencies providing bus service in the Chicago suburbs were merged under the Suburban Bus Division, which rebranded as Pace in 1984. In 2022, Pace had 18.041 million riders.
The Lincoln Service is a 284-mile (457 km) higher-speed rail service operated by Amtrak that runs between Chicago, Illinois and St. Louis, Missouri. The train is a part of the Illinois Service and is partially funded by the Illinois Department of Transportation. The train uses the same route as the long-distance Texas Eagle, which continues to San Antonio and Los Angeles. A connection with the Kansas City-bound Missouri River Runner is available in St. Louis.
The Union Pacific North Line (UP-N) is a Metra line in the Chicago metropolitan area. It runs between Ogilvie Transportation Center and Kenosha, Wisconsin; however, most trains terminate in Waukegan, Illinois. Although Metra owns the rolling stock, the trains are operated and dispatched by the Union Pacific Railroad. This line was previously operated by the Chicago & North Western Railway before its merger with the Union Pacific Railroad, and was called the Chicago and North Western Milwaukee Division and then the Chicago & North Western/North Line before the C&NW was absorbed by Union Pacific in April 1995. It is the only Metra line that travels outside Illinois.
The Union Pacific West Line (UP-W) is a Metra commuter rail line operated by Union Pacific Railroad in Chicago, Illinois and its western suburbs. Metra does not refer to its lines by particular colors, but the timetable accents for the Union Pacific West line are "Kate Shelley Rose" pink, honoring an Iowa woman who saved a Chicago & North Western Railway train from disaster in 1881. Green and yellow were already selected for the Union Pacific North Line and Union Pacific Northwest Line, respectively, so pink was chosen for this line. Therefore, the UP-W is the only Metra line that uses a color to honor a person instead of a fallen flag railroad. Until the late 1940s the line had a branch to Freeport, Illinois. It diverged from the main line at West Chicago and had stations at Elgin, Marengo, Belvidere, Rockford, Freeport, and other communities. The line was once known as the Chicago & Northwestern/West Line until UP took over the C&NW in 1995. All Metra trains on this line terminated at Geneva until 2006, when the line was extended to its present terminus in Elburn. The line runs as part of the Union Pacific Railroad's Geneva Subdivision.
The Union Pacific Northwest Line (UP-NW) is a commuter rail line provided by Metra and operated by the Union Pacific Railroad in Chicago, Illinois and its surrounding suburbs. While Metra does not refer to any of its lines by colors, the timetable accents for the Union Pacific Northwest Line are bright "Viking Yellow," honoring the Chicago & North Western Railway's Viking passenger train.
The BNSF Line is a Metra commuter rail line operated by the BNSF Railway in Chicago and its western suburbs, running from Chicago Union Station to Aurora, Illinois through the Chicago Subdivision. In 2010, the BNSF Line continued to have the highest weekday ridership of the 11 Metra lines. While Metra does not refer to its lines by particular colors, the BNSF line's color on Metra timetables is "Cascade Green," in honor of the Burlington Northern Railroad.
The North Central Service (NCS) is a Metra commuter rail line running from Union Station in downtown Chicago through northwestern and far northern suburbs to Antioch, Illinois. In December 2022, the public timetable shows seven weekday departures from Chicago. This line does not run at all on weekends or holidays. While Metra does not explicitly refer to any of its eleven routes by colors, the NCS' timetable accents are lavender, a shade of purple. It is one of two Metra lines that do not have a specific color for a fallen flag railroad that used to operate on the route.
The Milwaukee District North Line (MD-N) is a Metra commuter rail line in Chicago, Illinois and its northern suburbs, running from Union Station to Fox Lake. Although Metra does not refer to any of its lines by color, the timetable accents for the Milwaukee District North line are pale "Hiawatha Orange" in honor of the Milwaukee Road's Hiawatha passenger trains.
The Milwaukee District West Line (MD-W) is a Metra commuter rail line in Chicago, Illinois, and its western suburbs. Metra does not refer to any of its lines by a particular color, but the timetable accents for the Milwaukee District West line are dark "Arrow Yellow," honoring the Milwaukee Road's Arrow passenger train. Trains are dispatched from the Canadian Pacific Kansas City Railway's American headquarters in Minneapolis.
The SouthWest Service (SWS) is a Metra commuter rail line, running southwest from Union Station in downtown Chicago, Illinois, to Manhattan, Illinois. Metra does not refer to its lines by color, but the timetable accents for the SouthWest Service line are "Banner Blue," for the Wabash Railroad's Banner Blue passenger train. The trackage is owned by Metra north of a junction with the Belt Railway of Chicago at Loomis Boulevard, and is leased from Norfolk Southern Railway south of the junction.
The Rock Island District (RI) is a Metra commuter rail line from Chicago, Illinois, southwest to Joliet. Metra does not refer to its lines by color, but the timetable accents for the Rock Island District line are "Rocket Red" in honor of the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad's Rocket passenger trains.
The Metra Electric District is an electrified commuter rail line owned and operated by Metra which connects Millennium Station, in downtown Chicago, with the city's southern suburbs. As of 2018, it is the fifth busiest of Metra's 11 lines, after the BNSF, UP-NW, UP-N, and UP-W Lines with nearly 7.7 million annual riders. While Metra does not explicitly refer to any of its lines by color, the timetable accents for the Metra Electric District are printed in bright "Panama orange" to reflect the line's origins with the Illinois Central Railroad (IC) and its Panama Limited passenger train. Apart from the spots where its tracks run parallel to other main lines, it is the only Metra line running entirely on dedicated passenger tracks, with no freight trains operating anywhere on the actual route itself. The line is the only one in the Metra system with more than one station in Downtown Chicago, the only line with no stations in fare zone 4, and also has the highest number of stations (49) of any Metra line.
Joliet Union Station is an inactive Beaux-Arts train station in downtown Joliet, Illinois, built in 1912. Union Station was constructed as part of a large improvement project for the six railroads serving Joliet, which converged on the city as an important rail transportation hub just outside Chicago. At its peak, Union Station served over 100 intercity trains per day, with additional commuter and interurban service.
Halsted station is an "L" station on the CTA Orange Line, located near the intersection of Halsted Street and Archer Avenue in the Bridgeport neighborhood of Chicago. The station opened in 1993 as part of the extension to Midway Airport. A previous railroad station just to the east opened in 1902 and served the Metra Heritage Corridor until 1984.
Summit is an Amtrak and Metra train station in Summit, Illinois. It is served by Amtrak Illinois' Lincoln Service, which operates daily, and Metra's Heritage Corridor commuter line, which operates only during morning and evening rush hours in peak direction. Amtrak's Texas Eagle trains also use these tracks but do not stop. It is 11.9 miles (19.2 km) away from Union Station, the northern terminus of the line. In Metra's zone-based fare system, Summit is in zone 2. Summit is also the closest Metra station to Midway Airport.
Waukegan is a railroad station in Waukegan, Illinois, served by Metra's Union Pacific North Line. It is officially located on 95 North Spring Street, is 36.0 miles (57.9 km) away from Ogilvie Transportation Center, the inbound terminus of the Union Pacific North Line, and also serves commuters who travel north to Kenosha, Wisconsin. In Metra's zone-based fare system, Waukegan is in zone 4. As of 2018, Waukegan is the 67th busiest of Metra's 236 non-downtown stations, with an average of 764 weekday boardings.
North Chicago is one of two commuter rail stations on Metra's Union Pacific North Line located in North Chicago, Illinois. North Chicago is located at 1633 Lakeside Avenue, 33.7 miles (54.2 km) away from Ogilvie Transportation Center, the southern terminus of the Union Pacific North Line. In Metra's zone-based fare system, North Chicago is located in zone 4. As of 2018, North Chicago is the 168th busiest of Metra's 236 non-downtown stations, with an average of 170 weekday boardings.
Joliet Gateway Center is a multimodal mass transit center in downtown Joliet, Illinois. It opened in 2018, replacing the nearby Joliet Union Station as the commuter and passenger train station serving Joliet.
