Metra will be improving the schedule of its BNSF Line to Aurora beginning Monday, Sept. 8, adding weekday express trains and expanded hourly service on weekends.
The new schedule responds to customer feedback and ridership data with the aim of minimizing capacity issues on express trains during the morning and evening rush. To add capacity and better accommodate riders, Metra is adding two inbound express trains to the weekday morning service. The new trains will make stops from Lisle to Downers Grove and then express to Chicago. For the evening rush, Metra is adding two outbound trains that will express from Chicago to Congress Park and then make all stops to Fairview Avenue and two trains that will express from Chicago to Downers Grove and then make all stops to Aurora.
For reverse commuters, Metra is also adjusting the schedule of Train #1268, which will now depart Aurora at 3:40 p.m. and operate as a semi-express service, making all stops between Aurora and Westmont, then expressing to LaGrange Road and then again expressing to Cicero. The train will no longer stop at Clarendon Hills, Hinsdale, Western Springs, Brookfield, Hollywood, Riverside, Harlem Avenue, and Berwyn. Passengers using those stations will be served by Train #1312, which will depart Fairview Avenue at 4:12 p.m.
On weekends, Metra will be adding four trains to the BNSF schedule to create hourly inbound service between 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. and hourly outbound service between 8:30 a.m. and 12:30 a.m. The new schedule will also add a late night outbound express train to Downers Grove that will depart Chicago at 10:30 p.m. The line has the same schedule on Saturdays and Sundays.
In addition to these changes, there will be minor adjustments to departure times on several other trains. A copy of the new schedule can be viewed here.
Metra’s goal with its schedule changes is to accommodate the needs of our current riders and make the service a more attractive option for all travelers.
