Heritage Corridor

Heritage Corridor
Overview
Owner	Canadian National
Termini	Chicago Joliet
Stations	7
Service
Type	Commuter rail
System	Metra
Operator(s)	Metra, Canadian National
Daily ridership	2,400 (Avg. Weekday 2016)[1]
Ridership	177,838 (2020)
Technical
Line length	37.3 mi (60.0 km)
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Route map Legend NCS to Antioch MD-W to Big Timber Road MD-N to Fox Lake 0.0 Union Station Blue BNSF to Aurora Chicago River SWS to Manhattan IC West Line to Randolph Street Station Orange to Loop 2.6 mi 4.2 km Halsted Street closed Bubbly Creek IC West Line to Addison Orange to Midway 5.2 mi 8.4 km Brighton Park closed 10.3 mi 16.6 km closed 11.9 mi 19.2 km Summit 17.5 mi 28.2 km Willow Springs Calumet Sag Channel 25.3 mi 40.7 km Lemont 29.8 mi 48 km Romeoville 31.7 mi 51 km closed 32.9 mi 52.9 km Lockport RI to LaSalle Street 37.2 mi 59.9 km Joliet Amtrak to St. Louis & Los Angeles This diagram: view talk

The Heritage Corridor (HC) is a Metra commuter rail line in Chicago, Illinois, and its southwestern suburbs, terminating in Joliet. While Metra does not refer to its lines by colors, the Heritage Corridor appears on Metra timetables as "Alton Maroon," after the Alton Railroad, which ran trains on this route.^[2] The name Heritage Corridor refers to the Illinois and Michigan Canal Heritage Corridor. Established in 1984, it runs parallel to the line.^[3]

Unlike other Metra lines, the Heritage Corridor runs during weekday rush hours only in the peak direction–to Chicago in the morning and Joilet in the afternoon. The Heritage Corridor Line takes less than 1 hour to reach Joliet, significantly faster than the Rock Island District Line which also serves Joliet.

A fourth outbound train was added on March 14, 2016. Now seven trains run on the Heritage Corridor, three of them inbound, four outbound. All trains run through to (and start at) Joliet.

As of July 12, 2021, Metra operates three inbound trains and three outbound trains on the Heritage Corridor Line on weekdays, with each train serving all stations on the route. All inbound trains originate from Joliet in the morning, and all outbound trains terminate at Joliet in the afternoon. There is currently no off-peak, weekend, or holiday service on the Heritage Corridor Line.

Route[]

The line runs from Union Station in downtown Chicago through southwestern suburbs to Joliet. In March 2016, the public timetable shows four Chicago to Joliet trains each weekday. An additional train runs inbound during the afternoon rush hour but as an empty equipment move or deadhead.

Amtrak's Texas Eagle and Lincoln Service use these tracks from Union Station to Joliet. The Texas Eagle only stops at Chicago and Joliet, while the Lincoln Service also stops at Summit. The Joliet Transportation Center replaced Joliet Union Station on April 11, 2018.^[4]

On May 16, 2017, Metra announced that the new station for Romeoville had officially broken ground near the intersection of 135th St and New Avenue. The cost of the new station is estimated to be around $4.9 million.^[5] The station was opened to the public on February 5, 2018.^[6]

Stations[]

Zone	Location	Station	Connections and notes
A	Chicago	Union Station	Amtrak (long-distance): California Zephyr, Capitol Limited, Cardinal, City of New Orleans, Empire Builder, Lake Shore Limited, Southwest Chief, Texas Eagle Amtrak (intercity): Blue Water, Hiawatha, Illini and Saluki, Illinois Zephyr and Carl Sandburg, Lincoln Service, Pere Marquette, Wolverine Metra: ■ BNSF, ■ Milwaukee District North, ■ Milwaukee District West, ■ North Central Service, ■ SouthWest Service Chicago "L": Blue (at Clinton), Brown Orange Pink Purple (at Quincy) CTA Bus: 1, 7, J14, 19, 28, 56, 60, 120, 121, 124, 125, 126, 128, 130, 151, 156, 157, 192 Pace Bus: 755 Plainfield–IMD–West Loop Express Amtrak Thruway Motorcoach: Chicago-Madison and Chicago-Rockford (Van Galder), Chicago-Louisville (Greyhound)
		Halsted Street	Closed 1984[7]
		Brighton Park	Closed 1984[7]
	Central Stickney		Closed 1989[7]
C	Summit	Summit	Amtrak: Lincoln Service Pace Bus: 307 Harlem
D	Willow Springs	Willow Springs	Pace Bus: 390 Midway CTA–UPS Hodgkins Limited
E	Lemont	Lemont	Pace Bus: 755 Plainfield–IMD–West Loop Express
F	Romeoville	Romeoville	Pace Bus: 755 Plainfield–IMD–West Loop Express
	Lockport		Closed 1988[7]
G		Lockport	Pace Bus: 755 Plainfield–IMD–West Loop Express, 834 Joliet–Downers Grove
H	Joliet	Joliet	Amtrak: Lincoln Service, Texas Eagle Metra: ■ Rock Island Pace Bus: 501, 504, 505, 507, 508, 509, 511, 832, 834

Ridership[]

Between 2014 and 2019 annual ridership has remained steady at roughly 730,000.^[8][9] Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, ridership dropped to 177,838 passengers in 2020.^[10]

Notes[]

References[]

• Baty, Chris (2004). Chicago. Lonely Planet. ISBN 1-74104-032-9.

External links[]

Route map:

• Heritage Corridor service schedule