Metra UP-W Line Cab-Car Ride: C&NW Power at West Chicago & More!

Riding inbound (eastbound) Metra / Union Pacific- West Line train #510, from West Chicago to Ogilvie Transportation Center (Northwestern Station) in downtown Chicago, as seen from the front vestibule window of the cab-car. Not the whole ride is shown; just these tidbits:

First, a surprise just past the West Chicago depot: unpatched, ex-Chicago & North Western Dash-9 #8710 leads a Union Pacific SD70M with an autorack train and some manifest freight tacked on the rear. It's quite rare that a freight these days could be called "CNW 8710 West"! Once this passes, the new signals that replaced the C&NW-style signal bridge between West Chicago and Winfield, along with the now-signalless bridge, can be seen as we hit Metra's track speed before coming to a station stop at Winfield.

Next, past Winfield, is a road overpass under construction, just before the old Chicago, Aurora & Elgin (CA&E) electric interurban bridge over what is now UP's triple-track main into Chicago. The bridge carried the CA&E's line to Elgin, which had a branch to Geneva. Just south of this bridge were the CA&E's Wheaton Shops, and its Aurora line, with a branch to Batavia. The CA&E was owned by the same interests that controlled the North Shore Line to Milwaukee, the South Shore Line to South Bend, and many other electric interurban railroads-- unfortunately, the CA&E was the first to go of these, and the South Shore is the only one still in operation today. Thankfully though, the entire CA&E system (except its run over the CTA 'L' into Chicago) is preserved in the form of a popular hiking and biking trail- the Illinois Prairie Path, which was the first Rail-Trail in the nation, founded in 1963.

Lastly, as train #510 nears Chicago and the sun has set, the last suburb it passes through before the city limits is Oak Park. Chicago Transit Authority's Green Line- Lake Street parallels the line here on the same embankment as UP, from Harlem Ave in River Forest, to Laramie Ave on the West Side of Chicago. A train of 1970s-era Boeing-Vertol 2400-series cars, (the second-oldest rostered by the CTA, and used on this line and the Purple Line), passes our train as it makes its second-last stop at the Oak Park Avenue station.

Thanks for watching!

Category:

Autos & Vehicles

Tags:

• Metra
• Union Pacific
• West Line
• UP-W
• UP-West
• Union Pacific-West
• West Chicago
• Winfield
• Wheaton
• Oak Park
• River Forest
• Chicago
• IL
• Illinois
• rail
• railroad
• railway
• railfan
• railfanning
• C&NW
• CNW
• Chicago & Northwestern
• North Western
• CNW 8710
• Dash-9
• SD70M
• freight
• mixed
• manifest
• autoracks
• CA&E
• Aurora & Elgin
• interurban
• bridge
• passenger
• transit
• CTA
• Green Line
• cab car
• ride

[SightseerLounge]

Fun vid!

[OnTheStreetScene]

You really know your stuff

[cta4453]

CNW 8701