Commuter rail in North America

"Commuter railroad" redirects here. For commuter railroads in general, see Commuter rail.

NJ Transit has an extensive commuter rail system connecting New Jersey to New York City and Philadelphia. Long Island Rail Road commuter train in Westbury, New York. A Metra train in West Chicago, IL.

Commuter rail services in the United States, Canada, Cuba, Mexico, Panama, and Costa Rica provide common carrier passenger transportation along railway tracks, with scheduled service on fixed routes on a non-reservation basis, primarily for short-distance (local) travel between a central business district and adjacent suburbs and regional travel between cities of a conurbation. It does not include rapid transit or light rail service.

## Services

[edit]

Many, but not all, newer commuter railways offer service during peak times only, with trains into the central business district during morning rush hour and returning to the outer areas during the evening rush hour. This mode of operation is, in many cases, simplified by ending the train with a special passenger carriage (referred to as a cab car), which has an operating cab and can control the locomotive remotely, to avoid having to turn the train around at each end of its route. Other systems avoid the problem entirely by using bi-directional multiple units.

Other commuter rail services, many of them older, long-established ones, operate seven days a week, with service from early morning to after midnight. On these systems, patrons use the trains not just to get to and from work or school, but also for attending sporting events, concerts, theatre, and the like. Some also provide service to popular weekend getaway spots and recreation areas. The Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) is the only commuter railroad that operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week in North America.

A GO Transit Bombardier cab car at Toronto's Scarborough Station.

Almost all commuter rail services in North America are operated by government entities or quasi-governmental organizations. Most share tracks or rights-of-way used by longer-distance passenger services (e.g. Amtrak, Via Rail), freight trains, or other commuter services. The 600-mile-long (970 km) electrified Northeast Corridor in the United States is shared by commuter trains and Amtrak's Acela Express, regional, and intercity trains.

Commuter rail operators often sell reduced-price multiple-trip tickets (such as a monthly or weekly pass), charge specific station-to-station fares, and have one or two railroad stations in the central business district. Commuter trains typically connect to metro or bus services at their destination and along their route.

After the completion of SEPTA Regional Rail's Center City Commuter Connection in 1981, which allowed through-running between two formerly separate radial networks, the term "regional rail" began to be used to refer to commuter rail (and sometimes even larger heavy rail and light rail) systems that offer bidirectional all-day service and may provide useful connections between suburbs and edge cities, rather than merely transporting workers to a central business district.[1] This is different from the European use of "regional rail", which generally refers to services midway between commuter rail and intercity rail that are not primarily commuter-oriented.

Some transit lines in the NYC metropolitan areas have commuter lines that act like a regional rail network, as lines often converge at one point and pass as a main line to the destination station. They also pass through large business areas (ie Harlem, Jamaica, Stamford, Metropark), and some lines operate every 5–10 minutes during peak hours, and roughly every 15 minutes during off hours.

## Spread

[edit]

South Station in Boston, Massachusetts is a major transportation hub for the MBTA's commuter rail services.

The two busiest passenger rail stations in the United States are Pennsylvania Station and Grand Central Terminal, which are both located in the Borough of Manhattan in New York City, and which serve three of the four busiest commuter railroads in the United States (the Long Island Rail Road and NJ Transit at Penn Station, and the Metro-North Railroad and the Long Island Rail Road at Grand Central Terminal). The commuter railroads serving the Chicago area are Metra (the fourth-busiest commuter railroad in the United States) and the South Shore Line (one of the last surviving interurbans). Other notable commuter railroad systems include SEPTA Regional Rail (fifth-busiest in the US), serving the Philadelphia area; MBTA Commuter Rail (sixth-busiest in the US), serving the Greater Boston-Providence area; Caltrain, serving the area south of San Francisco along the peninsula as far as San Jose; and Metrolink, serving the 5-county Los Angeles area.

There are only three commuter rail agencies in Canada: GO Transit in Toronto (the second-busiest in North America), Exo in Montreal (eighth-busiest in North America), and West Coast Express in Vancouver. The two busiest rail stations in Canada are Union Station in Toronto and Gare Centrale in Montreal.

A suburban train in Bejucal, Cuba

Commuter rail networks outside of densely populated urban areas like the Washington D.C., New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Boston, San Francisco, Montreal, and Toronto metropolitan areas have historically been sparse. Since the 1990s, however, several commuter rail projects have been proposed and built throughout the United States, especially in the Sun Belt and other regions characterized by urban sprawl that have traditionally been underserved by public transportation. Since then, commuter rail networks have been inaugurated in Dallas–Fort Worth, Los Angeles, San Diego, Minneapolis, Denver, Salt Lake City, and Orlando, among other cities. Several more commuter rail projects have been proposed and are in the planning stages.

## Rolling stock

[edit]

Commuter trains are either powered by diesel-electric or electric locomotives, or else use self-propelled cars (some systems, such as the New York area's Metro-North Railroad, use both). A few systems, particularly around New York City, use electric power, supplied by a third rail and/or overhead catenary wire, which provides quicker acceleration, lower noise, and fewer air-quality issues. Philadelphia's SEPTA Regional Rail uses exclusively electric power, supplied by overhead catenary wire.

Diesel-electric locomotives based on the EMD F40PH design as well as the MP36PH-3C are popular as motive power for commuter trains. Manufacturers of coaches include Bombardier, Kawasaki, Nippon Sharyo, and Hyundai Rotem. A few systems use diesel multiple unit vehicles, including WES Commuter Rail near Portland and Austin's Capital MetroRail. These systems use vehicles supplied by Stadler Rail or US Railcar (formerly Colorado Railcar).

## List of North American commuter rail operators

[edit]

See also: List of United States commuter rail systems

UC=Under construction.

Metropolitan area(s)  | Country  | System  | Province / State  | Number
of lines  | Avg. weekday
ridership
(Q4 2018)[2] | Avg. weekday
ridership
(Q3 2024)[3] | Electrified

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

San Jose–Tri-Valley–Stockton |  USA | Altamont Corridor Express (ACE)  | California | 1 (2 UC)  | 6,100 | 3,100  | No
San Francisco–San Jose |  USA | Caltrain | California | 1 | 57,000 | 24,583  | Overhead line, 25 kV 60 Hz AC (partially, north of San Jose)
Sacramento–San Francisco Bay Area |  USA | Capitol Corridor[note 1] | California | 1 | 5,700 |  | No
San Diego–Oceanside |  USA | Coaster | California | 1 | 4,500 | 3,000  | No
San Bernardino |  USA | Arrow | California | 1 |  | 416  | No
Brunswick–Portland–Boston |  USA | Downeaster[note 1] | Maine / New Hampshire / Massachusetts | 1 | 1,300 |  | No
Montreal |  CAN | Exo | Quebec | 5 | 83,300 | 77,210  | No
Ogden–Salt Lake City–Provo |  USA | FrontRunner[4] | Utah | 1 | 19,200 | 15,000  | No
Toronto–Greater Golden Horseshoe |  CAN | GO Transit | Ontario | 8 | 271,000 | 240,700  | Planned, likely completion in 2032.[5]
New Haven / Hartford / Springfield / New London |  USA | CT Rail | Connecticut / Massachusetts | 2  |  |  | No (Hartford Line)
Overhead line, 12 kV 25 Hz AC and 25 kV 60 Hz AC (Shore Line East)
Havana |  CUB | Havana Suburban Railway | La Habana / Artemisa / Mayabeque / Matanzas | 8 |  |  | No (Lines 1 to 7)
Overhead line, 600 V DC (Hershey Railway)
Greater Metropolitan Area |  CRI | Interurbano Line | San José / Alajuela / Cartago / Heredia | 3 |  |  | No
Mexico City–Toluca |  MEX | El Insurgente | Mexico City / Mexico | 1 |  | 10,000  | Overhead line, 25 kV 60 Hz AC
Harrisburg–Philadelphia–New York City |  USA | Keystone Service[note 1] | Pennsylvania / New York | 1 | 5,000 |  | Overhead line, 12 kV 25 Hz AC
New York City–Long Island |  USA | Long Island Rail Road | New York | 11 | 360,000 | 276,800  | Third rail, 750 V DC (only parts of the network)
Baltimore–Washington, D.C. |  USA | MARC Train | Maryland / West Virginia / District of Columbia | 3  | 23,500 | 13,900  | No (Brunswick Line, Camden Line)
Overhead line, 12 kV 25 Hz AC (Penn Line)
Boston / Worcester / Providence |  USA | MBTA Commuter Rail | Massachusetts / Rhode Island | 12 (1 UC)  | 121,600 | 109,300  | No
Chicago metropolitan area |  USA | Metra | Illinois / Wisconsin | 11 | 277,100 | 168,600  | Overhead line, 1,500 V DC (Metra Electric District)
No (Other lines)
Los Angeles–Southern California |  USA | Metrolink | California | 8 | 37,600 | 19,200  | No
New York City / New Haven / Poughkeepsie |  USA | Metro-North Railroad | New York / Connecticut | 8 (1 UC)  | 315,700 | 235,300  | Overhead line, 12 kV 25 Hz AC
Third rail, 750 V DC (only parts of the network)
Northern New Jersey–New York City
Philadelphia–Atlantic City |  USA | NJ Transit Rail Operations | New Jersey / New York / Pennsylvania | 12 (1 UC)  | 238,082
(FY2017)[3][note 2] | 172,000  | Overhead line, 25 kV 60 Hz AC
Overhead line, 12 kV 25 Hz AC (only parts of the network)
Albuquerque–Santa Fe |  USA | New Mexico Rail Runner Express | New Mexico | 1 | 2,500 | 2,800  | No
Minneapolis–Saint Paul |  USA | Northstar Line | Minnesota | 1 | 2,600 | 500  | No
Panama City–Colón |  PAN | Panama Canal Railway | Panamá / Colón | 1 | 1,500
(2013)[6][needs update] |  | No
Denver |  USA | RTD Rail | Colorado | 4 | 28,700 | 29,100  | Overhead line, 25 kV 60 Hz AC
Santa Rosa–San Rafael |  USA | Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit | California | 1 |  | 3,400  | No
Chicago–South Bend |  USA | South Shore Line | Illinois / Indiana | 1 (1 UC)  | 10,900 | 6,300  | Overhead line, 1,500 V DC
Philadelphia |  USA | SEPTA Regional Rail | Pennsylvania / New Jersey / Delaware | 13 | 126,000 | 77,700  | Overhead line, 12 kV 25 Hz AC
Everett–Seattle–Tacoma |  USA | Sounder | Washington | 2 | 18,300 | 6,715  | No
Greater Orlando |  USA | SunRail | Florida | 1 | 5,600 | 4,600  | No
Mexico City |  MEX | Tren Suburbano | Mexico City / Mexico | 1 (2 UC)  | 195,000 (2017)[7] |  | Overhead line, 25 kV 60 Hz AC
Dallas–Fort Worth |  USA | Trinity Railway Express | Texas | 1 | 6,800 | 4,100  | No
Greater Miami |  USA | Tri-Rail | Florida | 2  | 13,900 | 15,400  | No
Washington, D.C. |  USA | Virginia Railway Express | Virginia / District of Columbia | 2 | 16,800 | 6,300  | No
Nashville |  USA | WeGo Star | Tennessee | 1 | 1,100 | 300  | No
Vancouver |  CAN | West Coast Express | British Columbia | 1 | 9,900 | 6,100  | No
Portland |  USA | WES Commuter Rail | Oregon | 1 | 1,600 | 300  | No

## List of under construction and planned systems

[edit]

There are several commuter rail systems currently under construction or in development in Canada, Mexico and the United States.

Metropolitan Area  | Country  | Province/State  | System  | Official
site  | Other
sites

|
|
|
|
|

Aguascalientes |  MEX | Aguascalientes | Tren Suburbano (no official name yet)  |  | [8][9]
Guadalajara |  MEX | Jalisco | Tren Suburbano  |  | [10][11]
Monterrey |  MEX | Nuevo León | Tren Suburbano de Monterrey | [12] | [13]
Alameda County / San Joaquin County |  USA | California | Valley Link | [14] | [15]
Anchorage |  USA | Alaska | Alaska Railroad (existing long-distance railroad, proposed commuter service)  | [16][17][18] | [19]
Charlotte |  USA | North Carolina | Lynx Red Line | [20] |
Cincinnati metropolitan area |  USA | Ohio | Eastern Corridor Commuter Rail | [21] |
Dallas |  USA | Texas | DART Silver Line | [22] |
Detroit |  USA | Michigan | SEMCOG Commuter Rail | [23][24][25] |
Durham |  USA | North Carolina | GoTriangle commuter rail (no official name)  | [26] | [27]
Jacksonville |  USA | Florida | First Coast Commuter Rail | [28] |
Miami-Dade |  USA | Florida | Northeast Corridor Rapid Transit Project |  |
Milwaukee |  USA | Wisconsin | Kenosha-Racine-Milwaukee Commuter Rail |  | [29][30]
Minneapolis |  USA | Minnesota | Dan Patch Corridor | [31] |
Oklahoma City |  USA | Oklahoma | Oklahoma City commuter rail |  | [32]
Phoenix |  USA | Arizona | Arizona Passenger Rail Corridor Study |  |
San Diego |  USA | California | SANDAG Purple Line | [33] |
San Luis Obispo |  USA | California | Coast Rail Corridor Study  | [34] |
Santa Cruz |  USA | California | Santa Cruz and Monterey Bay Railroad | [35] |
| Under construction

|

## Former

[edit]

The following systems have ceased operations since the formation of Amtrak in 1971.

* Cannonball between Milwaukee and Watertown, Wisconsin (until 1972)[36]
* Cleveland commuter rail, former Erie Lackawanna, later Conrail, service between Cleveland and Youngstown, Ohio (until 1977)
* Providence \- Westerly Service, New Haven, Penn Central and lastly Conrail service (until 1977)
* "Bayonne Scoot," Central Railroad of New Jersey, then Conrail service between Cranford and Bayonne (1967 - 1978)
* Lindenwold, New Jersey
* Lindenwold \- Cape May Service, Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines, later Conrail (until 1981)
* Lindenwold \- Ocean City Service, Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines, later Conrail (until 1981)
* Toronto, Hamilton and Buffalo Railway, Buffalo to Welland Service, New York Central, Penn Central and later Conrail Service (until 1981)
* Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
* Crusader and Wall Street, Philadephia to Newark Service, Central Railroad of New Jersey & Reading Service, later Conrail (until 1981)
* West Trenton to Newark Service, Central Railroad of New Jersey & Reading Service, later Conrail (until 1982)
* Los Angeles, California
* El Camino, Los Angeles to San Diego (1978)
* CalTrain, Oxnard to Los Angeles (1982–1983)
* Detroit, Michigan
* Penn Central, Michigan Executive between Detroit and Ann Arbor (until 1975 when service was commuted to Amtrak, operated until 1984)
* SEMTA (1974–1983)
* Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
* Parkway Limited, Pittsburgh, PA (1981)
* Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad service from Pittsburgh to Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania (until 1985)[37]
* PATrain, Pittsburgh, PA (1979–1989)
* Calumet, Penn Central, later Conrail service between Chicago and Valparaiso, Indiana (until 1979 when service was conveyed to Amtrak, operated until 1991)[38]
* Champlain Flyer, Burlington, Vermont (2000–2003)
* City rail, La Ceiba, Honduras (until 2006)
* OnTrack, Syracuse, New York (1994–2007)
* Cape May Seashore Lines, service from Cape May Court House to Cold Spring Village, later expanded to Cape May, and shortened to starting in Rio Grande (1996 - 2007, 2009 - 2012)
* FENADESAL service from San Salvador to Soyapango and Apopa, El Salvador (?–2000, 2004–2005, 2007–2013)

## See also

[edit]

* Railways portal

* Interurban
* List of airport circulators
* List of metro systems
* List of suburban and commuter rail systems
* List of rail transit systems in the United States
* List of tram and light rail transit systems
* List of United States commuter rail systems by ridership
* Northeast Corridor
* Public transport
* Regional rail
* Transit (transportation)
* Transportation in New York City

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ a b c State sponsored Amtrak route with commuter rail focus
2. ^ This figure is from NJ Transit's Fiscal Year 2017, which covers the calendar period July 2016 to June 2017.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Public Transportation: Bus, Rail, Ridesharing, Paratransit Services, and Transit Security" (PDF). Transportation Research Record. 1433. Transportation Research Board: 81–112\. 1994.
2. ^ "Public Transportation Ridership Report: Third Quarter 2024" (PDF). American Public Transportation Association. November 20, 2024. Retrieved February 8, 2025.
3. ^ a b "2017 New Jersey Transit Annual Report | NJOIT Open Data Center". data.nj.gov. Retrieved 2019-04-21.
4. ^ "Five Years of FrontRunner". rideuta.com. Utah Transit Authority. April 25, 2013. Retrieved 2014-01-08.
5. ^ Watson, H. G. (13 May 2022). "Signal failure: why Ontario's plans to electrify GO Transit's train lines are running late". The Narwhal. The Narwhal News Society.
6. ^ Panama Canal rail traffic hit by computer glitch, Reuters, 22 March 2013.
7. ^ "EL TREN SUBURBANO HA TRANSPORTADO A 57 MILLONES DE PERSONAS EN EL 2017". Ferrocarriles Suburbano. Ferrocarriles Suburbanos. 14 December 2017. Retrieved 11 May 2019.
8. ^ http://www.cddhcu.gob.mx/comisiones59legislatura/transportes/foro/Dr_Martinez.pdf[permanent dead link]
9. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-06-25. Retrieved 2008-04-16.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
10. ^ http://www.notisistema.com/noticias/?p=130621[permanent dead link]
11. ^ http://www.milenio.com/node/113320[permanent dead link]
12. ^ "Tren suburbano". Fideproes. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
13. ^ "Monterrey commuter rail study". Railway Gazette. 18 September 2020. Retrieved 21 September 2020.
14. ^ "Tri-Valley - San Joaquin Valley Regional Rail Authority". Retrieved 4 September 2020.
15. ^ "AB-758 Transportation: Tri-Valley-San Joaquin Valley Regional Rail Authority". Retrieved 17 October 2017.
16. ^ "Alaska Railroad". Retrieved 25 September 2020.
17. ^ "Commuter Rail Studyand Operations Plan" (PDF). Alaska Railroad. January 3, 2002. Archived (PDF) from the original on 29 November 2002. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
18. ^ South Central Rail Network Commuter Rail Study and Operations Plan (PDF) (Report). Alaska Railroad. January 15, 2002. Archived (PDF) from the original on 29 November 2002. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
19. ^ "Alaska Journal of Commerce: Colorado Railcar promotes self-propelled car in Alaska 08/11/03". Archived from the original on 2005-05-11. Retrieved 2006-07-18.
20. ^ "Red Line Commuter Rail". www.charlottenc.gov. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
21. ^ "Eastern Corridor Program of Transportation Improvements". 19 December 2012. Retrieved 13 March 2025.
22. ^ "Cotton Belt Public Private Partnership Request for Information". DART.org. Retrieved 2012-08-15.
23. ^ "Annar Borde Troitrapid Transitstud - Find Your True Transitstud Today!". www.annarbordetroitrapidtransitstudy.com. Archived from the original on 8 April 2018. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
24. ^ "Commuter Rail Transit Alternative 1 (CRT 1): Norfolk Southern Michigan Line" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on August 16, 2007. Retrieved December 24, 2006.
25. ^ "Commuter Rail Transit/Bus Rapid Transit Alternative (CRT 2): Norfolk Southern Detroit Division" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on September 28, 2007. Retrieved December 24, 2006.
26. ^ "Ready For Rail NC". GoTriangle. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
27. ^ Krueger, Sarah (3 May 2021). "Durham gets update on commuter rail proposal". WRAL. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
28. ^ "First Coast Commuter Rail". Jacksonville Transportation Authority.
29. ^ "Kenosha-Racine-Milwaukee Commuter Rail" (PDF). Federal Transit Administration. August 2022. Archived (PDF) from the original on 5 July 2023.
30. ^ Quirmbach, Chuck (2022-08-22). "Where passenger rail may be headed in Wisconsin—eventually". WUWM 89.7 FM - Milwaukee's NPR. Retrieved 2023-07-05.
31. ^ "redrockrail.org - Cocktail im Casino trinken". www.redrockrail.org. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
32. ^ Crum, William. "OKC could finally get a commuter rail line connecting downtown to Will Rogers World Airport". The Oklahoman. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
33. ^ "A Transformative Transportation Vision for the 2021 Regional Plan". sandag.maps.arcgis.com. San Diego Association of Governments.
34. ^ "SLOCOG Coast Rail Corridor Study". coastrailstudy.com. San Luis Obispo Council of Governments. Archived from the original on 14 May 2021.
35. ^ "Transit Corridor Alternatives Analysis". sccrtc.org. Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission. Archived from the original on 18 October 2023.
36. ^ Sanders, Craig (2006). Amtrak in the Heartland. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press. p. 184\. ISBN 978-0-253-34705-3.
37. ^ Baer, Christopher T. (April 2015). "A GENERAL CHRONOLOGY OF THE PENNSYLVANIA RAILROAD COMPANY ITS PREDECESSORS AND SUCCESSORS AND ITS HISTORICAL CONTEXT: 1980-1989" (PDF). Pennsylvania Railroad Technical & Historical Society.
38. ^ "Amtrak Ends Calumet Service". The Star Press. Muncie, Indiana. May 4, 1991. p. 2. Retrieved January 12, 2019 - via Newspapers.com.

* v
* t
* e

Commuter rail in the Americas

Sovereign
states|

* Antigua and Barbuda
* Argentina
* Bahamas
* Barbados
* Belize
* Bolivia
* Brazil
* Canada
* Chile
* Colombia
* Costa Rica
* Cuba
* Dominica
* Dominican Republic
* Ecuador
* El Salvador
* Grenada
* Guatemala
* Guyana
* Haiti
* Honduras
* Jamaica
* Mexico
* Nicaragua
* Panama
* Paraguay
* Peru
* Saint Kitts and Nevis
* Saint Lucia
* Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
* Suriname
* Trinidad and Tobago
* United States
* Uruguay
* Venezuela

Dependencies
and territories|

* Anguilla
* Aruba
* Bermuda
* Bonaire
* British Virgin Islands
* Cayman Islands
* Curaçao
* Falkland Islands
* French Guiana
* Greenland
* Guadeloupe
* Martinique
* Montserrat
* Puerto Rico
* Saba
* Saint Barthélemy
* Saint Martin
* Saint Pierre and Miquelon
* Sint Eustatius
* Sint Maarten
* South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
* Turks and Caicos Islands
* U.S. Virgin Islands

* North America
* Central America
* Caribbean
*   *   *   * South America

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