Chicago's Commuter Rail Network Evolution

[@PTB_BE]

Finally, he is back! METRA is in this position where they could be a really great system, but for some reason there is just no political ambition for it.

[@CPTE5069]

An orbital high capacity suburban loop line connecting with each radial line, with intense TOD at interchanges would be a massive improvement.

[@charleskummerer]

As a Chicagoan, the train line map you created is insanely confusing to look at from a geographical perspective.

[@cam_e6195]

Facts man this is hella confusing

[@kuyshina]

Can’t argue with that statement.

[@shabtech]

Agreed

[@HankGrill344]

I don’t think the point of these videos is to be geographically accurate.

[@charleskummerer]

@@HankGrill344 It doesn't have to be perfect, but when it's off by so much, it's extremely distracting and unhelpful for viewers who aren't familiar with the city but want to become

[@SpaceboyYT]

Wow. Chicago’s Commuter Rail is kinda like New Jersey Transit’s Commuter Rail with its station closures. Nice video btw!

[@OntarioTrafficMan]

They should keep going. Metra has way too many stations, making the trains unnecessarily slow and the network unnecessarily expensive to operate

[@OntarioTrafficMan]

@Eragor the Kindhearted Yes indeed on the busier lines some of the poorly-located stations could be retained, but reduced to rush hours only. That way they can provide extra parking capacity for rush hour when there's express service, but don't slow down trains off-peak when there's only one stopping pattern. On the BNSF line I'd consider skipping Cicero, Berwyn, Hollywood, Congress Park, Stone, Highlands, West Hinsdale and Fairview.

[@TrainSounds]

Same with Philly’s Septa Regional Rail

[@maroon5375]

@@OntarioTrafficMan Rock Island already does this to some extent. During the mid-day rides, my conductor just completely shot past Robbins and Washington Heights a couple times. Not sure if that was planned though lol.

[@russellgxy2905]

@@OntarioTrafficMan What they should do is add more trains that have either better acceleration or skip stops on certain runs like how the BNSF Racetrack does. Granted the latter option might be trickier since most other lines don't have three tracks, but I feel like modern signalling systems can better allow a omnidirectional double track by this point

[@Hawker5796]

The Vanishing Underground has risen again for 2023! Good to see you back!

[@ncliffordjr]

I've been excitedly waiting for this video for a while, thank you Zach! minor nitpick: the 59th St Metra Electric station serves the nearby University of Chicago, and is signed as "Univ. of Chicago/59th St" or sometimes "59th St (U. of Chicago)". lots of the ME stations within Chicago proper have subtitles like these to indicate the neighborhood they're in, which I mention because they're usually announced by the conductor with the subtitle included.

[@roberthansen2008]

I'm really looking forward to when you release your CTA video. That's going to be a awesome video!

[@SCANNO21]

Welcome back Zach, thank you very much for this new video ! This Chicago system seems really tricky... Thanks for clarifying it

[@abdullahrizwan592]

Welcome back! I am glad that you are making videos again!

[@andrewwilliams1757]

YES! I've been waiting for a Chicago video, just earned a sub!

[@NtGoat_AKA_Goatie]

Chicago, Illinois is a really great metro area within itself. It definitely has a lot of attributes that make the city a wonderful place to live such as the transportation system, the restaurants, the building scrappers, and so much more. The thing that I adore the most is the transport it has.

[@EpicThe112]

Excellent video and here's the thing you need to know one of the commuter lines actually encounters a time zone difference the South Shoreline meaning South Bend is an hour ahead of Chicago the timetable for that route actually displays both time zones Eastern and Central

[@joshuaw711]

I keep saying that if South Bend wants people to live there and commute to Chicago on a 90 minute train ride, they’re going to have to move to central time. Since it’s the seat of the media market, it would force other counties to move to the correct time zone as well.

[@EpicThe112]

@joshuaw711 you are correct but to the north of South Bend it's Michigan lower half Interstate 94 corridor which is Eastern Time via US-31.

[@TheCloakedTiger]

Wow! What a amazing system! Had no idea there was so many stations and stops!

[@chicagolandrailfan143]

Finally, after a long time of waiting, he finally did one for metra!

[@AaronSmith-sx4ez]

I know the focus was mostly on Metra...but Hiawatha can practically be considered a commuter rail line and could have been included.

[@tylerkochman1007]

Been waiting FOREVER for this one

[@mikep7547]

I’ve always boarded the train at Fox Lake to travel downtown. I didn’t know the line used to go all the way up to Walworth.

[@malachimuhammad-dy2ow]

North Central trains run express along the Milwaukee District West Line between Union Station and River Grove, while South Shore Line trains run express along the Electric Line between Van Buren Street, and Kensington.

[@ExpressRailfan]

Good point.

[@MikeyLikesIt89]

I commute on the line with the best time frequencies and on time record. On my Electric District commute from the end of the line makes a few stops in our fare zone, then blows past the rest until 55th. Then the reverse happens in the evening. How many commuter rail lines can get you from one end of the line to the other end in under 1 hour every day in all weather and on time? Metra Electric District is really “the real way to fly”.

[@ytjmg81]

Welcome back Zach! After the Chicago L, Will you do the Network Evolution for New York (LIRR, MNRR, & NYC Subway)? Thanks!

[@strongbad635]

Missed you, guy! This is fantastic!

[@VincentEngler]

Great video! One nit-picky detail about the landscape oriented version of the map: it seems to indicate that union station is north of Ogilvie but it's the other way around irl. Thanks for the great content

[@humoresque6740]

Finally he's back. Good job!

[@bryanCJC2105]

Great video! Metra is an integral part of Chicago's transportation network but it could be so much more. Metra service rates about a "C" for average and still better than most US commuter rail systems. It could be an "A", which is what's so frustrating. It has the bones to build a great integrated network on. It is not very well connected with the L network, even when running alongside the L as it does on Chicago's North Side w the Brown Line. In fact, neither Union Station nor Ogilvie Station (among the busiest in the US) is directly connected to the L. That is squarely on the City of Chicago for failing to provide decent connectivity from its busiest rail hubs to the rest of the city. There are a few good connections around the system, but there is a lot of room for improvements and connectivity. Aside from connectivity issues, the Electric Lines, which run mostly in the South Side of the city Chicago, are woefully underused due to a lack of fare integration w the L which also services the South Side of Chicago. These lines could dramatically improve mobility on the South Side is they didn't penalize riders w paying 2 separate fares to ride within the city limits. Metra also needs to find a way to connect suburb to suburb. Metra is designed solely to get people to the Loop, and nothing else really. Downtown centric travel is way down and the downtown commute may not ever be the same as it was before the pandemic. Despite decades of talk, a suburban ring route connecting the job heavy regions of Chicago's suburbs has yet to even seriously be attempted. Current connections between Metra lines, even those that cross each other, are few. There has also been lots of talk of reconfiguring Union Station to allow through-running and more efficient train movements but that come to nothing yet. Additionally, like most American commuter rail systems, frequencies vary widely and make the system difficult to use, especially mid-day and evenings. Service to Lake-Cook Rd, Metra's busiest reverse commute station, only gets hourly service from 8.30 am to 4.30 pm. Metra stations also range widely from nice stations to dilapidated ones w no customer amenities, sense of safety, or shelter from the elements. Metra isn't a very good partner w Chicago Transit Auth and CTA is not a very good partner w Metra. The RTA, which is supposed to coordinate between all the agencies, is pretty impotent. Since they don't work well together, the people of Chicago are denied an integrated system that could dramatically increase mobility for the region.

[@mrAhollandjr]

You can't totally blame the city of Chicago for the lack of connectivity. First, all of the commuter lines predates the existence of CTA and each railroad was its own entity. Even the city's L lines were their own separate entities before becoming the CTA in 1947. The creation of the RTA was very political. CTA and the commuter lines were experiencing financial difficulties. However. The State of Illinois was looking to gain control of the CTA in exchange for financial relief. The suburban politicians didn't want to bail out CTA unless their constituents were better served. The RTA was created to oversee finances for CTA, the suburban bus agencies and the commuter railroads. Pace and Metra were created in the 1980s to unify the suburban agencies. But there has always been a chasm between the suburbs and Chicago and between Chicagoland and the rest of the state of Illinois.

[@bryanCJC2105]

@@mrAhollandjr Yeah, there is plenty of blame to go around. I didn't totally blame Chicago. However, history is no excuse for not solving problems today and Chicago, CTA, Metra, and RTA are definitely to blame for not having addressed these issues since then. After all, suburbanites come to Chicago for work and fun and Chicagoans go to the suburbs for work and fun. An integrated transit network benefits both the suburbs and Chicago. I get the history behind it all but at some point we need to focus on the present and the future. Chicago and its suburbs are not different. They root for the same teams, they share family and friends, they work together. Let's build a future for both.

[@Lucius_Chiaraviglio]

Also need to electrify the rest of the METRA network, for more environmentally friendly and in the long run cheaper operation. Yes, it will be a big up-front investment, but it will save money in the long run.

[@starwberri4534]

Metra is too broke to do that... they can't even buy new locomotives so what makes you think they can electrify the entire system?

[@Lucius_Chiaraviglio]

@@starwberri4534 Last I heard, they just bought a bunch of diesel locomotives (granted, used not new). Yes, funding is a problem, but the state needs to fix that. Of course, getting representatives from other areas to vote for it is a problem, but given the Chicago area's dominance over Illinois politics, it should be possible.

[@dart157]

YES! The video we wanted but didn’t deserve. This was so good! I can’t wait for what comes next. Awesome video man!

[@QuarioQuario54321]

Huh. Nice. You never mentioned the rebuild of the street running section of the south shore line though.

[@roberthansen2008]

Thank you thank you thank you! I'm been looking forward to a new video from you all the time. I just love watching your videos! I also passed them around a lot. I'm really looking forward to that Peterson avenue stop on the north line opening up in a few months. I'll definitely use that one.

[@watertriton]

I wish Michigan had a system like this the Metra is fantastic whenever I go to Chicago.

[@aurora_tba]

While I still like the video my only real critique is the shape of the map. I know there’s probably a limited space reason but it would have been nice for a more accurate map

[@warrenpatterson1]

That is a very extension commuter rail network.

[@mic1240]

Nice summary, the map shown was bizarre however as didn’t reflect the scale or locations of how system is laid out, with odd shape of lakeshore and borders of the three states serves irregular. The video briefly showed the actual map at one point, maybe was done in odd layout as couldn’t do in real scale?

[@mattreedah]

A north-south raised rail or a subway connecting the different belts on the west side would be amazing

[@bos2pdx2yvr]

I love your videos, I'm so glad to see a new one! Look forward to more in the future. 🙂

[@101southsideboy]

there is talk about creating a new metra line from Chicago to the future Lincoln Airport in Will County near Crete / Beecher ILL with stops in Chicago Heights and Thorton

[@sammywithtrainsandships]

Could you do the evolution of Chicago's Subway system?

[@californiahummus]

I wish they would make a nonstop O'Hare to Union Station line.

[@Baby_CarlitosPlays11]

there now gonna do it on the NCS line fro august 12 to the august 30 but will make stops at o hare river grove,western ave, and union station and will serve weekend service

[@johnli25]

Damn Chicago grew a lot. It used to be the size of Toronto

[@MalachiM-cu9su]

@Vanshing Underground When is the Chicago L coming out?

[@nah_144]

After vanishing underground for 4 months, he has returned!

[@melvinsabala2379]

can you add austin,tx , NYC subway , NYC railroads, CTA subway, memphis, new orleans, and edmonton (version 2).

[@alexanderkha27]

This is really cool for a Chicago newbie like me

[@Mr.E723]

There’s also talk of extending the BNSF to Plano (or possibly as far as Sandwich) with stops in Montgomery, Oswego, and Yorkville but they’ve been saying that for the last 30 years. I wish they would just do it. Also talk of extending the UP West to Dekalb but who knows if it will actually happen.

[@momentogabe]

Hopefully your doing alright! How many more evolutions are left now? Is it just Chicago L and the two New York videos? Happy 2023 :)

[@harrybalch2441]

BTW the South Shore opened in 1908

[@daviddittrich5764]

It would be cool if at the end of the video you put in a quick Timelapse of the systems growth

[@TrainSounds]

Can’t wait for the Subway video and for NYC along with Detroit and Mexico City.

[@shabtech]

I don't think he'll do Detroit, it's system is too small.

[@rupturedtortoise.1542]

Really great video. Do you have any plans to make videos on NYC? If so that would be awesome. It's my hometown so I am a bit bias lol.

[@dmann5938]

He still lives on KZbin!!!!

[@snoofyair4744]

Woohooo! Can’t wait for u do the CTA

[@charlesthrush8134]

Great video but the map is weird lol

[@Nvideofilmsproductions]

Agree

[@vincentng2392]

There's still no decent transit link connecting the Metra terminals in Downtown Chicago?

[@shabtech]

Nope. Union, Ogilvie and Millennium stations don't even have access to the L lol.

[@edwardkasprzycki8593]

Got to do one on CTA

[@briansivley2001]

I'm going to be busy with traveling around Chicago this next half decade😁😁😁😁😁.

[@24gamingtriviaandmore10]

He's back with a banger!

[@ed4409]

If you finally do it, the CTA should work with you on your Chicago L video!

[@davidtsvetovat9419]

Is the evolution of Chicago el train next week

[@gloryannbatista6211]

Honestly for your next History of the lines you should do Puerto Rico subway And Bus transit network

[@transitcaptain]

Love these videos. This is a great one because it is about a Netwerk that comes from Chicago’s railroad history

[@MrJamieBattle]

Welcome back💪🏾

[@5starryansl]

Will you do a video like this on New York? 😇

[@gloryannbatista6211]

Spoiler Alert you did not release the Chicago Subway video AKA the l

[@shabtech]

Way to go 2023!

[@Jaquxan]

1976 should've did the year of 1966

[@ProfessorPancakes420]

Your map needs some work there, my friend. I know some distortions have to be made, but damn... there's no resemblance to the actual geography lol.

[@romanrat5613]

LIRR next?

[@gloryannbatista6211]

OK pretty please for your next video Zack can you please do Detroit's People mover and light rail and busway network It also had a Commuter Rail network and Streetcar subway Please Zack the By the way This video is really cool

[@ideallyjekyl5200]

I wish that they connected all of the main suburbs together via rail. So many long car rides south to the burbs would be saved if people just had a damn option to take the train

[@ExpressRailfan]

When is the Chicago L coming out?

[@brandoncole5533]

Where can I find the video on the L

[@shabtech]

Coming soon, but you can check Metro Liner's video on the L. kzbin.info/www/bejne/hnSuYWWMqraBrZI

[@albertcarello619]

In Philadelphia you only have one transit agency ruling all forms of transportation:: SEPTA!!! No other transit agencies in Philadelphia. L and L-subway lines, Light Rail, Trolley Streetcar Lines, Electric Regional Rail, Buses, and Trolley Buses all under the control of SEPTA!

[@Nvideofilmsproductions]

Statins closed on Heritage Corridor Halsted St Brighton Park Glenn 5th Ave

[@Rebelnightwolfe]

12 commuter rail lines and almost no direct connections between them. Yep, a very American way to do it.

[@kertchu]

Oh boy, can’t wait for the L to come next

[@0fficialdregs]

I still call it Randolph Street Stadium

[@eddiescanduratrains]

I wish LA’s rail systems looked like Chicago’s

[@Baby_CarlitosPlays11]

agree i usally take the av line

[@sgtdebones]

Finally

[@brendanu1680]

Which of all the closed stations should come back? Me:CLYDE CAUSE NO BNSF LINE STATION CAN CLOSE!

[@rolloman667]

What happened too the intro music. Thought it was cool

[@rolloman667]

Great video though.😀

[@arandomyoutubechannel2940]

He had to stop doing that due to copyright infringement

[@Mars-ev7qg]

I'd like to see an episode on the new Orleans trolley system but it's super controversial on every level so I can completely understand if you don't think it's a good idea. The oldest lines were built by slaves. Forced labor was widely used on expansions of the system well into the 20th century in the form of convict labor. Of course the system was for white passengers only until the late 1960s and at times Jewish passengers were also banned from riding. To this day it spectacularly fails to provide any tangible benefits the city's enormous poor neighborhoods. However an episode about the new Orleans trolley system could be a great cautionary tale of how not to build a transit system. Just some things to think about if you decide to talk about new Orleans transit.

[@michaelwithme4122]

That dose not look like lake Michigan

[@joshuafajardo5697]

↙️ Service will be rerouted from Union to LaSalle

[@0fficialdregs]

metra! metra!

[@jayg2025]

This train line map is not even close to accurate. Why does the lake look like this? The lines are not to any scale and stops on the same e/w streets don’t match up

[@tylerjacobs2200]

It's a stylized map to make everything fit on the screen in a legible way. They show a geographically accurate map at the end.

[@jayg2025]

@@tylerjacobs2200 exactly. It makes no sense to use a fantasy map when he could’ve just used the accurate one that we have now and added the removed stations to it as needed

[@shabtech]

​@@jayg2025 The geographic one would be very hard to put on the screen at once, like at the end he has to scroll down just to show the full accurate map, and it's not even zoomed-in that much. Otherwise we would be seeing tiny dots for writing.

[@MetroShadow1]

The agency that refuses to really evolve, operationally and politically. 🤦🏾‍♂️

[@paninithaligaming4530]

make a video on berlin

[@brendanu1680]

Why? It's Not Even In North America. Nashville And Detroit Would Make Better Videos!

[@paninithaligaming4530]

@@brendanu1680 doesnt matter if its in north america, Nashville and detroit have trashy commuter rail networks

[@joshuafajardo5697]

🚆🇺🇸

[@davidtsvetovat9419]

I want a face reveal

[@RolandoCheddar]

Period

[@joshuafajardo5697]

Do The L

[@joshuafajardo5697]

Maybe NYC & possibly the rest of the world

[@edsontransports9400]

1st

[@joshuafajardo5697]

I want the ↘️ Service & all the proposed lines & 🚉 to open & to reopen all the lost lines & 🚉

[@botmes4044]

With just a few downtown tunnels, systemwide electrification, and level boarding at every stop, METRA could become one of the largest RER systems in the world, with ridership competing alongside Berlin, Paris, and Osaka. The money's available, I just wish the the political will was.

[@maas1208]

Well, electrification is near impossible due to the Frieght Railroads owning the Tracks, and also tunnels are pretty hard to build, especially in Chicago since the city was built on top of a swamp and level boarding would require Rebuilding every station (Except the Electric district) on the system and Chicago isn't as big as those other cities and the Midwest isn't as densely populated like the northeast unless they cram Refugees from 3rd world countries that the USA bombed the hell out of, in the Midwest and also good luck with trying to convince corrupt politicians to do all this

[@botmes4044]

@@maas1208 🗑️💦🚣

[@maas1208]

​@@botmes4044 Bro what are you saying?

[@botmes4044]

@@maas1208 that you splashed enough *buckets of cold water* on my ideas for me to ride a jet ski on

[@divineOrders683]

As such a odd ball is it not too bad that elephant sat on the electric rail , oops 😬