AMTRAK RAILFAN TIPS

CANADIAN NATIONAL

Chicago Subdivision

Original Illinois Central main line serving Chicago, now CN. Passenger trains originally operated out of Central Station at Michigan Avenue and Roosevelt Road, south of downtown Chicago, and continued to use Central Station through the early days of Amtrak. But effective March 6, 1972, Amtrak finally achieved consolidation of all its trains into Union Station, although in a somewhat complicated way. Two different routings are available for Amtrak, both of which require a back-up move in or out of Union Station. Trains may back south and west to the Burlington Northern's Union Street interlocking, before proceeding forward east over the St. Charles Air Line to Clark Street and 16th Street. Or trains departing Union Station may back south to 21st Street, before proceeding forward northeast over the CN line to the junction at Clark Street and 16th Street. Clark Street is the crossing with Metra's Rock Island District, and a short distance east of there is "South Wye Junction", near Soldier Field, where the route finally joins the original Illinois Central line. The line then parallels the Metra Electric line through University Park (Stuenkel Road). At North Jct. and South Jct., a connection was constructed with what was the former Grand Trunk Western main line, also part of CN. In 2009, CN acquired the Elgin Joliet & Eastern, which crossed under the Illinois Central line at Matteson. In 2011, an elaborate new connection was completed in Matteson between those two lines. The former Grand Trunk Western line within Illinois became a less essential part of CN, and in 2013 that segment was transferred to CSX.