Metra

Metra continued to seek expansion options and to improve passenger service. Over the past three decades, Metra has invested more than $5 billion into its infrastructure. That investment has been used to purchase new rolling stock, build new stations, renovate tracks, modernize signal systems and upgrade support facilities. In addition to core improvements on the Union Pacific Northwest and Union Pacific West Lines, planning advanced on two new Metra routes, SouthEast Service and the Suburban Transit Access Route ("STAR" Line). In 2023, Metra announced plans to extend the Milwaukee District West Line to Rockford, Illinois, with intermediate stops at Huntley and Belvidere, by 2027. In August 2024, Metra ran hourly shuttles on the North Central Service between O'Hare International Airport and Union Station during the Democratic National Convention, leading some to question whether more frequent service to O'Hare could be permanently obtained. Such an agreement would require contracts with the two freight railroads - Canadian National, which owns some of the NCS track, and CPKC, which dispatches trains on another portion of the route. Additionally, improved service to O'Hare would likely require major infrastructure upgrades to track, sidings, crossovers, and flyovers, with the potential for dedicated rolling stock another consideration.

Corruption

Metra also has been marred by allegations and investigations of corruption. In April 2002, board member Don Udstuen resigned from both Metra and his executive job with the Illinois State Medical Society, after admitting to taking bribes to steer Metra contracts to firms associated with former legislator Roger Stanley and pleading guilty to his part in Illinois's Operation Safe Road scandal.

In April 2010, Metra's executive director, Phil Pagano, faced investigation for taking an unauthorized $56,000 bonus and was later found to have improperly received $475,000 in vacation pay. The day that the agency's board was scheduled to discuss his fate, Pagano stepped in front of a moving Metra train in an apparent suicide. Around the time of Pagano's death, allegations also surfaced that a Metra employee demanded a $2,000 payoff from the studio that used Metra in the 2011 film Source Code. That employee was later relieved of his duties, and retired.

In June 2013, Metra CEO Alex Clifford abruptly resigned his position with no public comment. It was later reported that his exit had been demanded by the Metra board, which negotiated an $871,000 severance package including a non-disclosure agreement. Clifford's ouster was allegedly arranged because he rejected requests for patronage hiring and promotion, including a request to promote a longtime supporter of State Representative Michael Madigan. In the wake of this scandal, five board members resigned. In August 2013, the remaining board members unanimously elected Don Orseno as interim CEO. (The six-member board was operating with reduced membership and thus lacked the authority to elect a permanent CEO. Orseno and Alex Wiggins shared duties as co-executive directors.) Orseno's long railroad career, beginning with work to set up trains and check doors for the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad played favorably in the board's decision. By October 2013, local officials had restored Metra's board to 11 members. After reviewing four candidates, the re-constituted board formally appointed Orseno CEO of Metra in January 2014.

In 2014, "a lengthy history of political patronage hiring at" Metra was reported, based on past files.

Underfunding

For a long time, Metra was not being funded enough to keep most equipment and rolling stock up to date. On average, the agency received approximately $700 million a year, but Metra claims to need about $2 billion a year, which only since 2020 has been accomplished. Because of this, Metra had to cut back on new rolling stock, instead resorting to their Rebuild Programs, in which they rebuild railcars and locomotives with newer state of the art utilities. Rebuilds cost only a fraction as much as buying new rolling stock, such as with their Amerail built cars. Rebuild programs can rebuild aging cars for approximately $650,000, whereas buying that same railcar new would be approximately $3 million.

Metra under NITA

On September 1, 2026, Metra's parent agency, the Regional Transportation Authority (RTA), was officially replaced by the new Northern Illinois Transit Authority (NITA). The creation of NITA is part of the implementation of state legislation (NITA Act, SB 2111) signed into law in December 2025. The NITA Act addresses underfunding and service coordination issues Metra and its peer agencies CTA and Pace have dealt with for years. NITA will receive $1.2 billion more in operating funds than what the RTA received. NITA will assume full authority to set fares, undertake service planning, manage and planning for capital projects, and link the distribution of operating funds to Metra with service outcomes. Metra will continue to have full control of day-to-day operations. The NITA Act also calls out specific tasks for Metra and its partners which include:

Launch a regional rail pilot on the Rock Island District by 2027;

Study extending the Metra Electric District to Kankakee;

Assist IDOT in studying improvements to the Joliet Gateway Center to accommodate future service to Peoria;

End the non-compete agreement with the South Shore Line, allowing people to use South Shore Line trains to travel between Metra Electric stations.

In addition to the initiatives required by the NITA Act, Metra has a long-term goal of moving to a regional rail model of operation and away from a commuter rail model of operation in response to changing ridership habits as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Routes are named either by their private freight rail operator, their historical rail operator or corridor, their direction in relation to downtown Chicago, or their power source. A route's color is usually in reference to a historical passenger train service.

In March 2025, Metra launched a survey to begin the process of re-naming and re-coloring all of its lines using a unified and consistent structure. Its two main proposals include the Cardinal Direction System, which will group lines based on cardinal directions (using the prefixes "N", "W", or "S" followed by a number) in relation to downtown Chicago and color them based on their downtown terminal, and the 'M' for Metra System, which will give all lines the prefix "M" followed a number 1 through 14 and color them all the same color. In both proposals, the branches of the Rock Island and Metra Electric would become separate lines, whereas the UP-NW's McHenry branch will remain part of the main line. Metra expects to complete the roll-out of new names and signs by early 2029.

BNSF Line

The BNSF Line is a 37.5-mile (60.4 km) route from Chicago Union Station to the Aurora Transportation Center in Aurora, Illinois. It had an average of 63,000 weekday passenger trips in 2018–2019, making Metra's busiest line. It is operated by BNSF Railway through a purchase-of-service agreement.

Heritage Corridor

The Heritage Corridor (HC) is a 37.2-mile (59.9 km) route from Chicago Union Station to the Joliet Gateway Center in Joliet, Illinois during weekday rush hours only in the peak direction. It had an average of 2,600 weekday passenger trips in 2018–2019, making it Metra's least-busiest line.

Metra Electric District

The Metra Electric District (MED) is a 31.5-mile (50.7 km) electrically-powered route from Millennium Station to University Park, Illinois, with an additional 9.1 miles (14.6 km) of branch lines serving Blue Island (except Sundays and holidays) and 93rd Street/​South Chicago. The line had an average of 28,100 passenger weekday trips in 2018–2019. As mandated by the NITA Act (SB 2111), Metra will study extending the MED to Kankakee, Illinois.

Milwaukee District North Line

The Milwaukee District North Line (MD-N) is a 49.5-mile (79.7 km) route from Chicago Union Station to Fox Lake, Illinois. The line had an average of 22,100 weekday passenger trips in 2018–2019.

Milwaukee District West Line

The Milwaukee District West Line (MD-W) is a 39.8-mile (64.1 km) route from Chicago Union Station to Big Timber Road in Elgin, Illinois; on weekends and holidays, service terminates at the Elgin Transportation Center in downtown Elgin. The line had an average of 20,600 weekday passenger trips in 2018–2019.

North Central Service

The North Central Service (NCS) is a 52.8-mile (85.0 km) route from Chicago Union Station to Antioch, Illinois. It had an average of 5,600-weekday passenger trips in 2018–2019. It does not run at all on weekends and holidays. The NCS has a station that serves O'Hare International Airport (ORD).

Rock Island District

The Rock Island District (RI) is a 40.0-mile (64.4 km) route (not inclusive of the 6.6-mile (10.6 km) Beverly Branch) to the southwest and southern suburbs. The line has 26 stations on two branches from LaSalle Street Station to the Joliet Gateway Center in Joliet, Illinois. Some trains branch off onto a local track and terminate at Blue Island/Vermont Street. It had an average of 26,900 weekday passenger trips in 2018–2019. Metra plans to debut its new Stadler FLIRT equipment on the Beverly Branch in 2027-2028.

SouthWest Service

The SouthWest Service (SWS) is a 40.8-mile (65.7 km) route from Chicago Union Station to Manhattan, Illinois, though most trains end at 179th Street/​Orland Park in Orland Park, Illinois. It had an average of 9,600-weekday passenger trips in 2018–2019. It does not run at all on Sundays and holidays, and Saturday service is currently suspended. Metra plans to eventually move SWS trains from Chicago Union Station to LaSalle Street Station as part of the CREATE 75th Street Corridor Improvement Project.

Union Pacific North Line

The Union Pacific North Line (UP-N) is a 51.6-mile (83.0 km) route from Ogilvie Transportation Center to Kenosha, Wisconsin, making it the only Metra line that travels outside of Illinois and outside the NITA service area. Most trains, however, end in Waukegan, Illinois. The line had an average of 34,600 weekday passenger trips in 2018–2019, making Metra's third-busiest line. There is a seasonal stop that serves the Ravinia Festival.

Union Pacific Northwest Line

The Union Pacific Northwest Line (UP-NW) is a 63.2-mile (101.7 km) route from Ogilvie Transportation Center to Harvard, Illinois, with most trains ending in Crystal Lake, Illinois. During weekdays except for holidays, service also includes a 7.59-mile (12.21 km) branch line to McHenry, Illinois. The line had an average of 40,100 weekday passenger trips in 2018–2019. It is Metra's longest line and second-busiest line

Union Pacific West Line

The Union Pacific West Line (UP-W) is a 43.6-mile (70.2 km) route running from Ogilvie Transportation Center to Elburn, Illinois. The line had an average of 27,900 weekday passenger trips in 2018–2019. There have been ongoing efforts to extend the line to DeKalb, Illinois.

New routes in development

In 2023, the Illinois Department of Transportation selected Metra as the agency to run restored rail service to Rockford. New stations will be built in Belvidere and Rockford. There were plans for a station in Huntley, but the village government backed out of the project in October 2025. The new route will share tracks with the Milwaukee District West Line from Chicago to Elgin, but will run as a separate service. Construction is scheduled to begin in Spring 2026, with a service start date of 2027.

Other proposed routes

Metra proposed two routes in the early 2000s: the SouthEast Service, which would connect some portions of the southern suburbs with downtown Chicago; and the Suburban Transit Access Route, which would connect various suburbs with each other without going into downtown. As of 2020, only the SouthEast Service is still being considered.

In August 2024, Metra operated a temporary pilot project where it ran daily and hourly train service from Union Station to O'Hare Transfer station on the North Central Service. It coincided with the 2024 Democratic National Convention. Metra plans to use the findings of the pilot project to explore the idea of launching a dedicated, frequent O'Hare Airport Express Service.

On December 16, 2025, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker signed the Northern Illinois Transit Authority Act (NITA, SB 2111) into law. A provision of the new law requires Metra to launch a study to explore the possibility of extending the Metra Electric District to Kankakee.

Pre-Metra routes

Several commuter lines were discontinued before Metra was established. The Illinois Central West Line from present-day Millennium Station to Addison, Illinois, (closed 1931), Pennsylvania Railroad line to Valparaiso, Indiana, (closed 1935), New York Central line from LaSalle Street Station to Elkhart, Indiana, (closed 1964), and four Chicago & North Western lines to St. Charles, Aurora, Freeport, and Kenosha-Harvard (all municipalities in Illinois and Wisconsin, closed 1930–51). The Burlington Route had service between Aurora and West Chicago, Illinois (closed 1943). Chicago Eastern Illinois operated commuter service on this line out of Dearborn Station to Dolton and Momence, respectively. The Chicago and Eastern Illinois commuter line to Momence, Illinois, ended in 1935, while the Chicago and Western Indiana service to Dolton, Illinois, was discontinued in 1964. Chicago Great Western had commuter service to DeKalb, Illinois (closed 1906). Santa Fe service to Joliet, Illinois (closed 1903). However, Metra runs service to Joliet, Illinois, on two routes: Heritage Corridor and Rock Island District.

Ridership

Ridership has been slowly declining on all but one line since 2014, as seen below. The figures post-2020 have been drastically affected by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Though monthly reports from 2024 show heavy improvement over 2021 figures, they are still below pre-pandemic levels. Peak-direction ridership is at only 56% of pre-pandemic ridership, while other types of weekday travel are between 80% and 95% recovery rates. Systemwide, Saturday and Sunday ridership has fully recovered to pre-pandemic numbers.

Connections

Transportation in Chicago consists of a public transportation infrastructure allowing for intermodal connections to local, regional, national and international transportation services. Parking lots are available adjacent to most suburban Metra stations for passengers connecting with their train by car. Most parking lots are operated by the municipality they are located in. Fees and fines are also assessed by the local municipality; however, parking is usually free on weekends and most holidays.

NITA's two other service boards, the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) and Pace Suburban Bus, connect with many Metra stations in downtown Chicago and in the suburbs. NITA coordinates fares, schedules, and service standards for all three service boards in order to ensure regional coordination and integration. Metra schedules will be designed to allow for timed connections to CTA and Pace buses and "L" trains, and vice versa.

The CTA's Chicago "L" rapid transit system has transfers with Metra at some Chicago stations. Most "L" lines traverse the Loop allowing nearby access to all downtown Metra terminals. There are also transfer points between Metra and the "L" outside of the Loop, such as transfers from the Union Pacific Northwest Line to the Blue Line at Irving Park and Jefferson Park Transit Center; from the Union Pacific North Line to the Purple Line at Evanston Davis Street; and from the Union Pacific West Line to the Green Line at Oak Park. "L" trains announce downtown Metra connections on board when announcing the next "L" stop.

Union Station doubles as both a Metra station and Amtrak's station in Chicago. In addition to Illinois Service and Hiawatha, Amtrak trains run nationwide including service to states spanning both coastlines. Passengers connecting from Ogilvie Transportation Center can access Union Station through its north platforms on the opposite side of Madison Street, with Millennium and LaSalle stations also within a short walking distance of Union Station as well. A number of suburban Metra stations are also shared with Amtrak as well. In addition, many intercity bus lines connect with passengers outside of Union Station.

The Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District (NICTD) operates the South Shore Line, a two-route commuter and interurban rail service connecting Chicago with Northwest Indiana and South Bend. Its two routes, the Lakeshore Corridor and Monon Corridor, originate at Millennium Station and operate along much of the Chicago portion of the Electric District line, as far south as 115th Street/Kensington. The passage of the NITA Act (SB 2111) ended a long-standing non-compete agreement in which passengers were not allowed to use South Shore Line trains for travel between stations that are also served by Metra.

Many outlying terminal stations have connections to other public transit systems in nearby metropolitan areas. At Elburn station, there is connection to DeKalb Public Transit's Route 12, which provides service to DeKalb and Northern Illinois University. At Kenosha, several Kenosha Area Transit bus routes and the Kenosha streetcar serve the Metra station, along with Coach USA's Wisconsin Coach Lines commuter service to Racine and Milwaukee. University Park station was served by an express commuter bus operated by Kankakee's River Valley Metro MTD, but the route is currently suspended.

Metra serves Chicago's O'Hare International Airport through O'Hare Transfer station on the North Central Service, although primarily during weekday rush periods, and there is no service on weekends. There is no Metra station that directly serves Chicago's Midway International Airport. Alternatively, O'Hare and Midway Airports can be accessed via connections to the CTA's Blue and Orange Lines respectively.

Positive train control

In regards to the PTC mandate that passed Congress, Metra took steps to meet the deadline. Metra concluded that the December 31, 2015, mandate to have PTC running was an unreasonable requirement. This aligned with the stance taken by much of the railroad industry. This is due to a variety of factors including but not limited to: delays from the government, and the fundamental complexity of building a program from the ground up. Moreover, Metra estimates the cost of implementing the system on their 1,100 miles (1,800 km) of track in the Chicago region to be over $200 million. The fear is this unfunded mandate will divert scarce capital funds from other essential needs. This includes building and maintaining existing tracks, stations, signals, and other equipment that ensures a safe operating environment for all of Metra's passengers. However, Metra recognizes the need for PTC but needed a more reasonable timeline to implement such a program. This recognition is partially based on Metra's previous accident history. Two noteworthy events were a pair of accidents on the Rock Island District within a span of a couple of years. The first event was a derailment that occurred on October 12, 2003, when a train flew through a 10 mph crossing at 68 mph. A second very similar occurrence happened on September 17, 2005, but was more serious. The latter derailment killed two passengers and injured 117. Both of these incidents could have been prevented if PTC were in place. In both circumstances, PTC would have overridden the engineer and slowed the train down to the appropriate speed to prevent an accident from occurring.

Recently, Metra has taken significant steps in the process to fully implementing PTC. On April 22, 2015, the Metra board approved an $80 million contract to Parsons Transportation Group. Parsons was the sole bidder and speaks to the complexities of the project. They will be in charge of incorporating various devices from GPS, radio, to trackside antennas into one cohesive system. The group has some experience in this sector previously as Parsons worked with the southern California commuter rail agency Metrolink to install their system.

By the year 2020, Metra completed installation of the Positive Train Control. This came at a capital cost of $400 million and an annual operating cost of $20 million. Metra's PTC system works with the trains of 12 other railroad companies.