Union Pacific North Line

Commuter rail line in Wisconsin and Illinois

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Union Pacific North Line

A southbound train departs Highland Park station

Overview
Status| Operational
Owner| Union Pacific Railroad
Locale| Chicago metropolitan area
Termini|

* Ogilvie Transportation Center
* Waukegan (Most trips)
Kenosha

Stations| 28
Website| metra.com/train-lines/up-n
Service
Type| Commuter rail
System| Metra
Operator(s)| Metra
Daily ridership| 41,000 (Avg. Weekday 2009)[1]
Ridership| 4,131,189 (2023)
Technical
Line length| 51.6 miles (83.0 km)[2]
Track gauge| 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)

Route map

Union Pacific North Line highlighted in dark green

* * *

Show interactive map

Legend

|  |  |  |  |

00.0 km

|  |

| former route

to Milwaukee

|  |  |  |

|  |

| Amtrak to St. Paul,

Seattle, or Portland

|  |

|  | Lake Front Depot
|  |

| 84.2 mi

135.5 km

Milwaukee

(1966-1971)

|  |

|  |

Menomonee River

|  |

|  |

Milwaukee River

|  |

|  | National Avenue
|  |

|  |
|  |

|  |

Kinnickinnic River

|  |

| Amtrak

to Union Station

|  |

| 78.2 mi

125.9 km

Cudahy
|  |

| 74.7 mi

120.2 km

South Milwaukee
|  |

| 61.8 mi

99.5 km

Racine
|  |

|  |

Root River

|  |

|  |

Kenosha coach yard

|  |

| 51.5 mi

82.9 km

Kenosha
|  |

120.2 km

| KD Line

to Rockford

|  |

|  |

| Kenosha County

Lake County
,  Wisconsin

Illinois
border

|  |

| 44.5 mi

71.6 km

Winthrop Harbor
|  |

| 43.1 mi

69.4 km

Camp Logan
|  |

| 42.1 mi

67.8 km

Zion
|  |

| 39.9 mi

64.2 km

Dunes Park
|  |

| 37.6 mi

60.5 km

Asbestos
|  |

|  |

Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway

|  |

| 35.9 mi

57.8 km

Waukegan
|  |

|  |

Waukegan coach yard

|  |

| 34.0 mi

54.7 km

Abbott's Platform
|  |

| 33.7 mi

54.2 km

North Chicago
|  |

|  |
|  |

|  |
|  |

|  |

Robert McClory Bike Path

|  |

|  |

| North Shore Line

to Waukegan or Milwaukee

|  |

| 32.0 mi

51.5 km

Great Lakes
|  |

|  |
|  |

| 30.2 mi

48.6 km

Lake Bluff
|  |

|  |

| North Shore Line/Bike Path

to Mundelein

|  |

|  |

Union Pacific Railroad

|  |

| 28.3 mi

45.5 km

Lake Forest
|  |

| 25.7 mi

41.4 km

Fort Sheridan
|  |

| 24.5 mi

39.4 km

Highwood
|  |

|  |

Green Bay Trail

|  |

| 23.0 mi

37 km

Highland Park
|  |

| 21.5 mi

34.6 km

Ravinia
|  |

| 20.9 mi

33.6 km

Ravinia Park

(seasonal)

|  |

| 20.5 mi

33 km

Braeside
|  |

|  |

| Lake County

Cook County
border

|  |

|  |

North Branch Trail

|  |

| 19.2 mi

30.9 km

Glencoe
|  |

| 17.7 mi

28.5 km

Hubbard Woods
|  |

| 16.6 mi

26.7 km

Winnetka
|  |

| 15.8 mi

25.4 km

Indian Hill
|  |

| 15.2 mi

24.5 km

Kenilworth
|  |

| 14.4 mi

23.2 km

Wilmette
|  |

|  |

| North Shore Line

to the Loop

|  |

| 13.3 mi

21.4 km

Evanston Central Street
|  |

|  |

North Shore Channel

|  |

|  |

| Weber Subdivision

to Union Pacific Northwest Line

|  |

Purple to Linden

|  |

| 12.0 mi

19.3 km

Evanston Davis Street
|  |

|  |
|  |

| 11.5 mi

18.5 km

Dempster Street
|  |

| 11.0 mi

17.7 km

Evanston Main Street
|  |

| 10.3 mi

16.6 km

Calvary
|  |

Purple to Howard or the Loop

|  |

Yellow |  to Dempster–Skokie

to Howard

|  |

| 9.4 mi

15.1 km

Rogers Park
|  |

| 8.4 mi

13.5 km

Kenmore
|  |

| 8.3 mi

13.4 km

Peterson/​Ridge
|  |

| 7.8 mi

12.6 km

Rose Hill
|  |

| 7.1 mi

11.4 km

Summerdale
|  |

| 6.5 mi

10.5 km

Ravenswood
|  |

Brown to Kimball

|  |

| 6.2 mi

10 km

Ravenswood–Wilson
|  |

| 5.5 mi

8.9 km

Northcenter
|  |

Brown to the Loop

|  |

| 4.6 mi

7.4 km

Belmont Avenue
|  |

| 3.5 mi

5.6 km

Deering
|  |

|  |

Chicago River (north branch)

|  |

|  |

| Union Pacific Northwest Line

to Harvard or McHenry

|  |

| 2.9 mi

4.7 km

Clybourn
|  |

|  |
|  |

|  |

Chicago Terminal Railroad

|  |

|  |

| Union Pacific West Line

to Elburn

|  |

Blue to O'Hare

|  |

|  | Kinzie Street Depot
|  |

|  |

Chicago River (north branch)

|  |

|  | Wells Street Station
|  |

| Metra & Amtrak

to Union Station

|  |

Green Pink

|  |

Blue to Forest Park

|  |

0 mi

| Ogilvie Transportation Center
|  |  |  |  |  |

Key

|  |  |

|  | Union Pacific North Line /

| former

alignment

|  |

|  | Metra Milwaukee District lines
|  |

|  | other Metra lines
|  |

|  | other freight lines /

| former

alignment

|  |

|  | CTA lines /

tunnel

|  |

|  | former interurban lines
|  |

|  | paths & rail trails
|  |  |  |  |  |

Mileage source[3]

* * *

All stations are accessible except
Clybourn, Indian Hill, and Hubbard Woods.

This diagram:

* view
* talk
* edit

Show route diagram map

The Union Pacific North Line (UP-N) is a Metra line in the Chicago metropolitan area. It runs between Ogilvie Transportation Center and Kenosha, Wisconsin; however, most trains terminate in Waukegan, Illinois. Although Metra owns the rolling stock, the trains are operated and dispatched by the Union Pacific Railroad. This line was previously operated by the Chicago & North Western Railway before its merger with the Union Pacific Railroad, and was called the Chicago and North Western Milwaukee Division and then the Chicago & North Western/North Line before the C&NW was absorbed by Union Pacific in April 1995. It is the only Metra line that travels outside Illinois.

Metra does not refer to its lines by particular colors, but the timetable accents for the Union Pacific North line are dark "Flambeau Green," a nod to the C&NW's Flambeau 400 passenger train.[4]

Until 2022, a private club car ran weekdays exclusively on the Union Pacific North Line. It was the last remaining private car in service on a commuter railroad in the United States.

The current timetable as of May 20, 2024 shows 71 trains (35 inbound and 36 outbound) on weekdays. Of these, ten inbound trains originate from Kenosha, 16 from Waukegan, seven from Highland Park, and two from Winnetka. Three outbound trains terminate at Winnetka, six at Highland Park, 17 at Waukegan, nine at Kenosha, and one at Ravinia Park.

During the summer concert season, outbound train no. 393 terminates at Ravinia Park on weekdays. Otherwise train no. 393 terminates at Winnetka.

13 trains operate in each direction on Saturdays. Of these, five inbound trains originate from Kenosha and eight from Waukegan. Six outbound trains terminate at Waukegan and seven at Kenosha.

Nine trains operate in each direction on Sundays. Of these, three inbound trains originate from Kenosha and six from Waukegan. Six outbound trains terminate at Waukegan and three at Kenosha.

During the summer concert season, on weekends, an extra outbound train, named RAV1, makes all stops to Evanston Central Street, then runs express to Ravinia Park during events, with a train returning to Chicago after the concert.

## History

[edit]

The route followed by the UP North Line was constructed in 1854 by the Chicago & Milwaukee Railroad.[5] Passenger service between Chicago and Waukegan began on January 4, 1855. Initially, a single train operated each day, departing from a terminal in Chicago at Water St. and Kinzie St. at 8:30 am and returning from Waukegan at 3:30 pm.[6][7] The president of the railroad, former Chicago mayor Walter S. Gurnee, speculated on land in Lake County spurring the development of railway suburbs along the line.[8] The railroad merged with the Green Bay, Milwaukee & Chicago Railroad in 1863, and was acquired by the Chicago and North Western Railway in 1866.[7][9] Commuter rail services along the line started operating into the new Chicago and North Western Terminal (now Ogilvie Transportation Center) in 1911. In 1966, the Chicago and North Western closed the Lake Front Depot and began operating into the new Milwaukee Union Station. This service would ultimately prove to be relatively short lived as the Chicago and North Western ended operations between Chicago and Milwaukee in 1971 and the line was truncated to Kenosha.

The North line became part of Metra when the agency was formed in 1984. The trains continued to be operated by the Chicago and North Western Railway under contract until that railroad was bought by Union Pacific in 1995. UP now operates passenger services along the line for Metra. Under a longstanding agreement that UP inherited from the C&NW, Metra owns the vehicles and the stations along the line, but Union Pacific employs the crew who actually operate the trains, and they also control the right-of-way along the route.

Beginning in 2023, the Union Pacific Railroad announced that commuter operations on all three of the Union Pacific lines would be transferred to Metra; the Union Pacific would continue to own and maintain the right-of-way.[10][11] The transfer was initially expected to occur by Q1 2024;[12] however, it was delayed by a year to May 16, 2025.[13][14][15]

All stations on the line except for Ravinia Park are open daily. Ravinia Park is only open during the Ravinia Festival in the summer months.

## Ridership

[edit]

Between 2014 and 2019, annual ridership declined by 8.3% from 9,328,441 passengers to 8,552,117 passengers.[16][17] Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, ridership dropped to 2,300,363 passengers in 2020.[18][19] As of October 2024, the line has Metra's highest ridership recovery rate at 83% of pre-pandemic weekday ridership. Peak-direction ridership is at 70% of pre-pandemic numbers, while all other metrics (reverse-peak, midday, evening, Saturday, and Sunday ridership) is at or above pre-pandemic ridership.[20]

1,000,000

2,000,000

3,000,000

4,000,000

5,000,000

6,000,000

7,000,000

8,000,000

9,000,000

10,000,000

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

2022

2023

2024

## Route

[edit]

The service shares the Union Pacific Railroad's Harvard Subdivision with the Union Pacific Northwest Line from Ogilvie Transportation Center in downtown Chicago to a junction just before Clybourn station. From Clybourn, the North Line splits from the Northwest Line and traverses the Kenosha Subdivision north to Kenosha, Wisconsin. The Kenosha Subdivision continues to St. Francis, Wisconsin and a junction with the Union Pacific's Milwaukee Subdivision.[21] No passenger trains operate north of Kenosha.

The Green Bay Trail parallels the Union Pacific North Line, using the former right of way of the North Shore Line for over 51.9 miles (83.5 km) from the Chicago Loop to Kenosha, Wisconsin.

## Stations

[edit]

State  | County  | Zone  | Location  | Station  | Connections and notes

|
|
|
|
|

WI | Milwaukee
| Milwaukee | Lake Front Depot | Closed 1966
Union Station | Closed April 30, 1971
National Avenue  | Closed between 1943 and 1956
Cudahy | Cudahy | Closed 1957
South Milwaukee | South Milwaukee | Closed between 1956 and 1961
Racine
Racine | Racine | Closed April 30, 1971
Kenosha | 4  | Kenosha | Kenosha |  Kenosha Area Transit: 1, 4
Kenosha Streetcar
IL | Lake | Winthrop Harbor | Winthrop Harbor |
Zion | Camp Logan  | Closed after October 28, 1956, served Camp Logan
Zion |  Pace: 571
| Beach Park | Dunes Park  | Closed after October 28, 1956
Waukegan | Asbestos  | Closed after October 28, 1956
4  | Waukegan |  Pace: 561, 562, 563, 564, 565, 568, 571, 572
North Chicago | Abbott's Platform | Closed 1986[22]
North Chicago |  Pace: 563, 564
Great Lakes |  Pace: 563
Lake Bluff | Lake Bluff |
Lake Forest | Lake Forest |
Highwood | Fort Sheridan |  Pace: 472
Highwood |  Pace: 472
Highland Park | Highland Park |  Pace: 213, 471, 472
3  | Ravinia |
Ravinia Park | Seasonal
Braeside |
Cook | Glencoe | Glencoe |  Pace: 213
Winnetka | Hubbard Woods |  Pace: 213
Winnetka |  Pace: 213, 423
Indian Hill |  Pace: 213
Kenilworth | Kenilworth |  Pace: 213
2  | Wilmette | Wilmette |  Pace: 213, 421, 422
Evanston | Evanston Central Street |  CTA Bus: 201, 206
Pace: 213
Evanston Davis Street |  Chicago "L": Purple (at Davis)
CTA Bus: 93, 201, 206
Pace: 208, 213, 250
Pace Pulse: 101 Dempster Line
Dempster Street | Closed December 1, 1958
Evanston Main Street |  Chicago "L": Purple (at Main)
CTA Bus: 206
Pace: 213
Calvary | Closed December 1, 1958
Chicago | Rogers Park |  CTA Bus: 22, 96
Kenmore | Closed December 1, 1958,[23] replaced with Peterson/Ridge
Peterson/​Ridge |  CTA Bus: 84
Rose Hill | Closed December 1, 1958[23]
Summerdale | Closed December 1, 1958[23]
Ravenswood |  Chicago "L": Brown (at Damen)
CTA Bus: 9, 81
| Ravenswood–Wilson | Closed after July 3, 1963, replaced with Ravenswood
Northcenter | Closed December 1, 1958
Belmont Avenue | Closed December 1, 1958
Deering | Closed after June 13, 1943
2  | Clybourn |  Metra: ■ Union Pacific Northwest
CTA Bus: 9, X9, 73
| Kinzie Street Depot | Closed c. 1879
Wells Street Station | Closed 1911, replaced by the Chicago and Northwestern Terminal (Ogilvie Transportation Center)
1  | Ogilvie
Transportation Center |  Metra: ■ Union Pacific Northwest, ■ Union Pacific West
Chicago "L": Green Pink (at Clinton)
CTA Bus: J14, 19, 56, 60, 120, 124, 125, 126, 128, 130, 157, 192

## See also

[edit]

* Kenosha–Racine–Milwaukee rail service, a proposed restoration of passenger service between Kenosha and Milwaukee.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Ridership Reports – System Facts". Metra. Archived from the original on January 2, 2010. Retrieved April 6, 2010.
2. ^ Metra Railfan Tips – Union Pacific/North Line Archived September 12, 2005, at the Wayback Machine
3. ^ 2020 State of the System Report (p. 22)
4. ^ "Did you know?" (PDF). On the Bi-Level: 3. June 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 2, 2010.
5. ^ "Gurnee History". Village of Gurnee. Archived from the original on September 6, 2015. Retrieved September 16, 2007.
6. ^ Mason, Blanche (1919). "Historical Sketch of Highland Park". Highland Park Public Library. Archived from the original on December 17, 2007. Retrieved December 3, 2007.
7. ^ a b Giles, H. H. (1879). "Wisconsin Railroads". The History of Racine and Kenosha Counties, Wisconsin. Chicago: Western Historical Company. pp. 173–185.
8. ^ Ebner, Michael H. "Lake County, IL". Encyclopedia of Chicago. Retrieved September 21, 2007.
9. ^ "Chicago & North Western – A Capsule History". Chicago & North Western Historical Society. Archived from the original on May 22, 2016. Retrieved September 16, 2007.
10. ^ "Union Pacific announces start of transition of Chicago commuter rail operations to Metra". Trains. April 3, 2023. Retrieved May 19, 2025.
11. ^ "Union Pacific Transferring Commuter Rail Services to Metra". Union Pacific Railroad. Retrieved April 1, 2023.
12. ^ Studenkov, Igor (October 25, 2024). "Metra and Union Pacific make progress on operations transfer; fate of stations to be decided". Evanston RoundTable. Retrieved May 19, 2025.
13. ^ "Metra assumes operation of trains on UP commuter lines". Trains. May 19, 2025. Retrieved May 19, 2025.
14. ^ Hirsh, Jeff (May 19, 2025). "Metra completes takeover of UP commuter line operations". Evanston Now. Retrieved May 19, 2025.
15. ^ "UP lines now being operated directly by Metra". Metra. Retrieved May 19, 2025.
16. ^ "RIDERSHIP TRENDS ANNUAL REPORT 2018" (PDF). Metra. p. 4. Retrieved May 12, 2019.
17. ^ "RIDERSHIP TRENDS ANNUAL REPORT 2019" (PDF). Metra. Retrieved February 27, 2021.
18. ^ "RIDERSHIP TRENDS ANNUAL REPORT 2020" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on April 23, 2021. Retrieved April 4, 2021.
19. ^ RTAMS. "Metra Ridership by Line".
20. ^ "Ridership Reports, October 2024" (PDF). Metra.com. November 13, 2024. Retrieved November 26, 2024.
21. ^ "Illinois State Rail Plan" (PDF). Illinois Department of Transportation. 2012. pp. 4–28\. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 13, 2015.
22. ^ Ridership Trends - Annual Report 2017 (PDF) (Report). Metra Division of Strategic Capital Planning. February 2018. p. 32. Retrieved December 2, 2018.
23. ^ a b c "Chicago & North Western Railroad: History of Milwaukee line". Edgewater Historical Society. Retrieved August 10, 2018.

## External links

[edit]

KML file (edit • help)

Template:Attached KML/Union Pacific / North Line

KML is from Wikidata

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Metra Union Pacific/North Line.

* Metra Union Pacific/North service schedule

* v
* t
* e

Metra

Lines|

| Current|

* BNSF
* Heritage Corridor
* Metra Electric
* Milwaukee District North
* Milwaukee District West
* North Central Service
* Rock Island
* SouthWest Service
* Union Pacific North
* Union Pacific Northwest
* Union Pacific West

|

Proposed|

* Rockford Intercity Passenger Rail
* Suburban Transit Access Route
* SouthEast Service

Stations and terminals|

* Chicago Union Station
* LaSalle Street Station
* Millennium Station
* Ogilvie Transportation Center

Rolling stock|

* EMD F40C
* EMD F40PH
* EMD F59PH
* MPI MP36PH-3S
* Gallery Car
* Highliner
* Car 553

Incidents|

* 1972 Chicago train crash (Illinois Central Gulf Railroad)
* 1995 Fox River Grove train crash
* 2005 Elmwood Park train crash

See also|

* Regional Transportation Authority
* South Shore Line
* Calumet
* Illinois Central West Line
* Chicago Region Environmental and Transportation Efficiency Program

* v
* t
* e

Passenger trains of the Union Pacific Railroad

Metra (commuter rail)|

* West Line
* Northwest Line
* North Line
* Ogilvie Transportation Center

Early articulated streamliners|

* M-10000
* M-10001
* M-10002
* M-10003 to M-10006

City fleet|

* City of Denver
* City of Kansas City
* City of Las Vegas
* City of Los Angeles
* City of Portland
* City of Salina
* City of San Francisco
* City of St. Louis

Others|

* Butte Special
* Challenger
* Colorado Special
* Columbine
* Forty Niner
* Gold Coast
* Idahoan
* Los Angeles Limited
* Nightingale
* Overland
* Overland Flyer
* Overland Limited
* Pacific Limited
* Pony Express
* Portland Limited
* Portland Rose
* Saint Louis Express
* San Francisco Challenger
* San Francisco Overland
* San Francisco Overland Limited
* Spokane
* Treasure Island Special
* Utahn
* Yellowstone Special

Rolling stock|

* Astra Dome
* Pacific series
* Placid series

Amtrak|

* Amtrak Cascades
* California Zephyr
* Coast Starlight
* Southwest Chief
* Sunset Limited
* Texas Eagle
* Winter Park Express

| Midwest|

* Missouri River Runner
* Lincoln Service

|

California|

* Capitol Corridor
* Pacific Surfliner
* San Joaquins

|

See also|

* Milwaukee Road
* Southern Pacific Railroad
* Chicago and North Western Railway

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