SouthWest Service

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SouthWest Service train at Template:Stl (March 2025).
Overview
OwnerNorfolk Southern Railway (Leased to Metra)
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Stations13
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Service
TypeCommuter rail
SystemMetra
Operator(s)Metra, Norfolk Southern Railway
Daily ridership9,600 (Avg. Weekday 2014)[1]
Ridership1,108,399 (2025)[2]
Technical
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Route map
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The SouthWest Service (SWS) is a Metra commuter rail line, running southwest from Union Station in downtown Chicago, Illinois, to Manhattan, Illinois. Metra does not refer to its lines by color, but the timetable accents for the SouthWest Service line are "Banner Blue," for the Wabash Railroad's Banner Blue passenger train.[3] The trackage is owned by Metra north of a junction with the Belt Railway of Chicago at Loomis Boulevard, and is leased from Norfolk Southern Railway south of the junction (NS has trackage rights over Metra's portion).[4]

History

Template:Chicago–Decatur local The line south of the curve at the east end of the section aligned with 75th Street was the Wabash Railroad 6th district subdivision, completed in 1880 by the Wabash, St. Louis and Pacific Railway. That 75th Street curve was a junction with the Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad, of which the Wabash owned one-fifth, used to reach Dearborn Station in downtown Chicago.[citation needed] Commuter service from Chicago began as early as 1893, with trains running as far south as Orland Park,[5] and by 1909, the service had been extended with several trains operating as far south as Manhattan.[6] The level of service deteriorated in the 1930s, with commuter operations effectively reduced to one train in each direction making local stops from Chicago to Decatur. By 1964, the once daily Chicago–Decatur trains were cut back to Orland Park.[5]

After several reorganizations the Wabash Railroad was leased by the Norfolk and Western Railway on October 16, 1964.[7]Template:Rp The single round trip continued under the new ownership, who named the train the Orland Park Cannonball.[8] On May 1, 1971, Amtrak assumed control of most intercity passenger trains in the United States. On this date all intercity services operating into and out of Chicago were either routed into Union Station or discontinued, leaving the single Orland Park Cannonball as the only train to still use Dearborn Station. Dearborn Station closed, but the commuter train continued to use a small platform and track on the property until 1976 when it relocated to Union Station via a new connection at Alton Junction.[9]Template:Rp

The Regional Transportation Authority began to subsidize the service in 1978.[10] N&W merged with Southern Railway to form the Norfolk Southern Railway in 1982, and for the next decade the line was known as the Norfolk Southern Line (NS). The RTA closed the Western Avenue station on May 15, 1984, as part of a cost reduction plan which saw the closure of twelve other lightly used stations and the removal of ticket agents from an additional seventeen stations across the system.[11] On June 1, 1993 Metra took over operations and renamed it the SouthWest Service.[4]

The rail line expansion project, which includes 11 miles (18 km) of new track and at least two additional train stations, was completed (except for the Laraway Road station) in January 2006. The number of trains per day was doubled from 16 to 30, 15 in each direction. For years, Pace operated Route 835, whose bus service enhanced the limited train service in the SouthWest Service corridor. With the rail service expansion, ridership on route 835 became so poor that Pace eliminated it on August 17, 2007.[12]

Metra started Saturday service on March 21, 2009, with six trains between Union Station and Manhattan.[13]

Future

Template:SouthWest Service (Rock Island alignment) SouthWest Service trains will shift from Union Station to LaSalle Street Station with the reconfiguration of the 75th Street Corridor under the auspices of the Chicago Region Environmental and Transportation Efficiency Program (CREATE).[14][15] A third mainline track will also be built between LaSalle St Station and 74th to handle the increase in traffic. In addition, LaSalle Street station will be expanded.[16] This would relieve congestion at Union Station and improve reliability for the SouthWest Service as well as allow more trains to run in each direction.[14]

Service frequency

As of February 15, 2024, Metra operates 30 trains (15 in each direction) on the SouthWest Service Line on weekdays. Of these, five trains operate to and from Template:Stl and 10 operate to and from Template:Stl. Three of the trains that travel beyond 179th Street serve Template:Stl and Manhattan as "flag to discharge" stops.

Since March 2020 and as of May 2026, Saturday service on the SouthWest Service is currently suspended. There is also no service on Sundays or holidays.[17]

The Laraway Road and Manhattan stations see a combined ridership of under 60 people daily, making them two of the least-used stations on Metra's system.

Ridership

Since 2014 annual ridership has declined from 2,659,040 to 2,356,767, an overall decline of 11.4%.[18][19] Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, ridership dropped to 574,815 passengers in 2020.[20][2] It has seen a steady recovery since 2021, but still remains below pre-pandemic levels. The line's 1,108,399 riders in 2025 made it the ninth busiest Metra line.

Stations

County Zone Location Station Connections and notes
Cook 1 Chicago Template:Stl Template:Indented plainlist

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  Dearborn Station Closed 1976, service switched to Union Station
47th Street Closed July 29, 1979
Template:Stl File:PICOL Flag.svg Closed July 29, 1979
Halsted Closed July 29, 1979
Racine Closed July 29, 1979
Ashland Closed July 29, 1979
Western Avenue Closed May 1984
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Template:Stl
3 Oak Lawn Template:Stl Bus interchange Pace: 381, 395, 769
Chicago Ridge Template:Stl Bus interchange Pace: 384
Worth Template:Stl Bus interchange Pace: 385, 386
Palos Heights Template:Stl Bus interchange Pace: 769
4 Palos Park Template:Stl
Orland Park
Southmore File:PICOL Flag.svg Closed between 1976 and 1984
Template:Stl Bus interchange Pace: 379
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Template:Stl
Will   New Lenox Steele Closed 1962
Brisbane Closed 1962
4 Template:Stl
Manhattan Template:Stl

References

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  1. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Ridership Reports - System Facts". Archived from the original on January 2, 2010. Retrieved January 2, 2010.
  2. ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.RTAMS. "Metra Ridership By Line".
  3. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Did you know?" (PDF). On the Bi-Level: 3. June 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 2, 2010.
  4. ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Metra (2013). "SouthWest Service History". Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved June 7, 2014.
  5. ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Burgess, Paul (Spring 2013). "Follow the Flag: Chicago's Metra "Wabash Extension"". First & Fastest. Vol. 29, no. 1. Lake Forest, Illinois: Shore Line Interurban Historical Society. p. 12.
  6. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Burgess, Paul (Spring 2013). "Follow the Flag: Chicago's Metra "Wabash Extension"". First & Fastest. Vol. 29, no. 1. Lake Forest, Illinois: Shore Line Interurban Historical Society. p. 11.
  7. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Schafer, Mike (2000). More Classic American Railroads. Osceola, Wisconsin: MBI Publishing Co. ISBN 978-0-7603-0758-8.
  8. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Norfolk and Western Railway (July 3, 1972). "Suburban Passenger Service".
  9. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Holland, Kevin J. (2001). Classic American Railroad Terminals. Osceola, WI: MBI. ISBN 9780760308325. OCLC 45908903.
  10. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Burgess, Paul (Spring 2013). "Follow the Flag: Chicago's Metra "Wabash Extension"". First & Fastest. Vol. 29, no. 1. Lake Forest, Illinois: Shore Line Interurban Historical Society. p. 14.
  11. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."RTA closing 13 rail stations". Chicago Tribune. March 9, 1984. p. 51. Retrieved January 20, 2019 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  12. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Wronski, Richard (August 17, 2007). "Pace bus route, Bears shuttle cut". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved February 17, 2023.
  13. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Hood, Joel (March 2, 2009). "Metra adding Saturday service to SouthWest line in March". Chicago Metra. Archived from the original on March 25, 2009. Retrieved February 3, 2009.
  14. ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."P2, P3, EW2, GS19 75th Street Corridor Improvement Project" (PDF). CREATE. November 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 13, 2020. Retrieved January 10, 2018.
  15. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Preckwinkle, Partners Mark 75th Street Rail Corridor Improvement Project". The Chicago Crusader. October 1, 2018. Retrieved December 12, 2018.
  16. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Metra Moving". Railway Track & Structures. September 12, 2009. Retrieved April 21, 2012.[permanent dead link]
  17. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."SWS Schedule" (PDF). Metra. October 27, 2025. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 27, 2025. Retrieved October 27, 2025.
  18. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."RIDERSHIP TRENDS ANNUAL REPORT 2018" (PDF). Metra. p. 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 12, 2019. Retrieved May 12, 2019.
  19. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."RIDERSHIP TRENDS ANNUAL REPORT 2019" (PDF). Metra. Retrieved February 27, 2021.
  20. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."RIDERSHIP TRENDS ANNUAL REPORT 2020" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on April 23, 2021. Retrieved April 4, 2021.

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