Skip to Content
Streetsblog Chicago home
Streetsblog Chicago home
Log In

Metra

Service boost means BNSF Line will get Metra’s first-ever across-the-board weekend schedule, starting April 29

In addition, Halsted Street station will get weekend service, and Downers Grove's Fairview stop will become an off-peak stop.

April 19, 2024

Metra notes big increase in bicycle ridership while Amtrak shares details on Union Station concourse overhaul

Metra has seen a 70% increase in bicyclist ridership since it started allowing bikes on all trains in February.

April 9, 2024

Leaders celebrated for commitment to public transit and pedestrian safety at annual Movers & Shakers Ball

1st Ward Ald. Daniel La Spata, Metra CEO James M. Derwinski, and 7th District Illinois State Senator Mike Simmons were honored at the event.

April 8, 2024

Metra is looking to build a rail yard to increase service on the Union Pacific Northwest line

Woodstock, Illinois, where the movie "Groundhog Day" was filmed, hopes that more trains will attract more visitors.

March 25, 2024

He can’t drive 65: Metra CEO seeks to increase Electric line speeds to 90 mph

"Everybody based [the 65 mph speed limit] on what they knew, but nobody asked the right questions," Metra CEO Jim Derwinski recently said.

March 8, 2024

At ATA’s Transit is Essential Town Hall, participants discussed strategies to improve local bus and train service

Ideas included offering more Metra reverse-commute service, diversifying the transit advocacy community, and canvassing door-to-door on public transportation issues.

March 5, 2024

RTA and CMAP discuss future of paratransit at Urban Transportation Center seminar

CMAP providing technical assistance to improve transit for people with disabilities. But looming budget gap threatens service systemwide.

February 28, 2024

Should a Streetsblog reader “Surrender” to commuting from Rockford to Chicago?

We compare the strengths and weaknesses of driving, and/or riding the train or bus, from the Forest City to the Windy City.

February 23, 2024

Metra orders battery-powered trains, gets funding for new bilevel passenger cars

As Metra's board authorized the purchase of eight battery-powered Stadler train sets, the FTA announced the railroad will get $100M to purchase 50 bi-level rail cars.

February 22, 2024

Millennium Station’s Randolph/Michigan elevator has been broken for months, with no word on fixing it

We decoded Metra's confusing directions for how to access Millennium Station by elevator while the Randolph/Michigan lift is indefinitely out of commission.

February 13, 2024