Chicago Terminal Railroad

A switcher on Kingsbury Street.

Overview
Headquarters| Chicago, Illinois
Reporting mark| CTM
Locale| Chicago, Illinois
Dates of operation| 2007–2019
Technical
Track gauge| 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge

Not to be confused with Baltimore and Ohio Chicago Terminal Railroad.

The Chicago Terminal Railroad (reporting mark CTM) was a switching and terminal railroad that operated over former Milwaukee Road/Canadian Pacific and Chicago and North Western/Union Pacific trackage in northern Illinois. The railroad began its operations on January 2, 2007. The railroad rostered a total of three locomotive units, all of EMD design.

## Routes

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* CTM Chicago Operations: The first routes acquired by CTM on January 2, 2007, from Canadian Pacific were the remnants of the former Milwaukee Road Chicago & Evanston (C&E), Deering, and Chicago & Pacific (aka Bloomingdale Line) branch lines in the city of Chicago. CTM ran from the Union Pacific North Avenue Yard where it was a tenant, north to the Bloomingdale Line, then east across a swing bridge over the North Branch of the Chicago River to C&E Junction in the middle of Kingsbury Street south of Cortland Avenue. From there one end went north to Peerless Confectionery at Lakewood and Diversey on the C&E North Line with a lead coming off at Kingsbury just north of Cortland where a remnant of the Deering Line was used to service Finkl Steel. South of C&E Junction CTM operated down Kingsbury Street to where the tracks ended just north of Division Street with another lead (former C&P) veering off from the C&E South Line on Kingsbury just north of North Avenue. The Goose Island lead went south and crossed North Avenue, then over an arm of the Chicago River on the Cherry Street bridge to service Big Bay Lumber on Cherry just past Division on Goose Island. At its peak CTM in Chicago serviced just four industries it inherited: Finkl Steel, Peerless Confectionery, Big Bay Lumber, and General Iron Industries. It had joint access to Sipi Metals along with UP off the former Rolling Mill Yard area across from the Kennedy Expressway.

This CTM operation was notable for its extensive operations on street trackage, especially on Lakewood Avenue, Kingsbury Street, and Cherry Avenue.

The last revenue run by CTM was in 2015 to Big Bay Lumber. Later CTM would store empty freight cars on various parts of the tracks.

The line was formally abandoned in 2019, with the City of Chicago acquiring the rights to reactivate rail service while at the same time pursuing conversion of the line to a rail trail.[1]

* Centex Industrial Park: The CTM took over operations in this location from the Central Illinois Railroad in April 2007. Located in Elk Grove Village, Illinois, this is former Chicago and North Western trackage that was operated by Union Pacific until 2001. In 2018, Progressive Rail took over Operations on this line under the name Chicago Junction Railway.
* Bensenville Industrial Park: Located roughly adjacent to the Elk Grove Village operation, this former Milwaukee Road branch was leased to the CTM by Canadian Pacific in 2007. Progressive Rail took over this line in 2019, operating it as the Chicago, St Paul & Pacific Railroad (not to be confused with the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific Railroad).

## References

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1. ^ City of Chicago-Acquisition Exemption-Chicago Terminal Railroad

## External links

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* Chicago Terminal Railroad Unofficial Web Page
* Chicago Terminal Railroad Photo Album of the Chicago operations
* Chicago Terminal, Chicago Area Shortline Railroads unofficial site
* Chicago Terminal Railroad Photograph Tour (2008)

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Railroads of Illinois

Common carriers|

* A&R Terminal Railroad
* Ag Valley Railroad
* Alton and Southern Railway
* Belt Railway of Chicago
* Bloomer Shippers Connecting Railroad
* BNSF Railway
* Burlington Junction Railway
* Canadian National Railway
* Grand Trunk Western Railroad
* Illinois Central Railroad
* Chicago Central and Pacific Railroad
* Wisconsin Central
* Central Illinois Railroad
* Chicago–Chemung Railroad
* Chicago, Fort Wayne and Eastern Railroad
* Chicago Port Railroad
* Chicago Rail Link
* Chicago South Shore and South Bend Railroad
* City of Rochelle Railroad
* Coffeen and Western Railroad
* Canadian Pacific Kansas City
* Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad
* Kansas City Southern Railway
* Soo Line Railroad
* Crab Orchard and Egyptian Railway
* CSX Transportation
* Baltimore and Ohio Chicago Terminal Railroad
* Decatur Central Railroad
* Decatur & Eastern Illinois Railroad
* Decatur Junction Railway
* Eastern Illinois Railroad
* Effingham Railroad
* Evansville Western Railway
* Gateway Eastern Railway
* Illinois and Midland Railroad
* Illinois Railway
* Illinois Western Railroad
* Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad
* Indiana Rail Road
* Iowa Interstate Railroad
* Joppa and Eastern Railroad
* Kankakee, Beaverville and Southern Railroad
* Keokuk Junction Railway
* Lincoln and Southern Railroad
* Manufacturers' Junction Railway
* Manufacturers Railway
* Norfolk Southern Railway
* Peoria and Pekin Union Railway
* Peru Industrial Railroad
* Pioneer Industrial Railway
* Port Harbor Railroad
* Riverport Railroad
* Shawnee Terminal Railway
* South Chicago and Indiana Harbor Railway
* Southern Illinois and Missouri Bridge Company
* Tazewell and Peoria Railroad
* Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis
* Toledo, Peoria and Western Railway
* Union Pacific Railroad
* Vandalia Railroad
* Vermilion Valley Railroad
* Wisconsin and Southern Railroad

Passenger carriers|

* Airport Transit System
* Amtrak
* Chicago "L"
* Metra
* MetroLink
* South Shore Line

Private carriers|

* Bulkmatic Railroad
* C&C Railroad
* Calumet Transload & Railroad
* Captain Mine
* Chicago Heights Terminal Transfer Railroad
* Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad
* DOT Rail Service
* FNG Logistics Company
* Joliet Junction Railroad
* Kaskaskia Regional Port District Railroad
* Mokena Illinois Railroad
* North American Industrial Railway
* Peabody Energy
* Peoria, Peoria Heights and Western Railroad
* Respondek Railroad Corporation

Heritage railroads|

* Fox River Trolley Museum
* Illinois Railway Museum
* Monticello Railway Museum
* Silver Creek & Stephenson Railroad

* See also: Former carriers in Illinois
* List of United States railroads by political division

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