Main Line (Forest Park to Wheaton)
Aurora Branch (Wheaton to Aurora)
Elgin Branch (Wheaton to Elgin)
Batavia Branch (Batavia Jct. to Batavia)
Geneva Branch (Geneva Jct. to Geneva)
Fox River Division (St. Charles to South Elgin)
This interurban line between Aurora and Elgin was abandoned earlier, and less of the right of way is preserved.
Zoomable Google satellite views, showing which segments have been preserved as trails, and locations of preserved structures.
Illinois Prairie Path
This non profit organization has developed much of the right of way into trail, for walking and bicycling. By exploring these trails, one can get a sense of the character of these old interurban lines, and occasionally see an old station or other artifact from a bygone era.
Detailed street maps or Google Maps are recommended to aid in locating these trails. These trails can be explored either on foot or by bicycle. With a bicycle, many of the trail segments are suitable for one day round trips. Bicycles are permitted on Metra trains and CTA rapid transit trains during off peak hours, except during certain festival periods. And all Pace and CTA buses are now equipped with bicycle racks.
For walkers, public transportation can be used to reach most of these trail segments. Most trail segments can be walked by riding a Metra train or a bus to one point on a trail, walking one way, and boarding a train or a bus at another location. One can thus avoid backtracking on a walk.
Not so well known among many, are the various bus operations which were operated by the Chicago Aurora & Elgin Railroad or various subsidiaries, at various times during the railroad's history.