Metra tweaks schedule on BNSF and UP West lines

If you typically arrive at your Metra station to catch the BNSF train into Chicago with a minute to spare, it's time to recalibrate.

Metra is adjusting the schedules on its busiest line for departure times at local stations effective Sunday, Oct. 9.

The changes are intended to reflect actual train performance and are a result of analysis of months of GPS data and signal times, Metra officials said.

Although the shift will affect about two-thirds of BNSF trains, the variances will typically be about one to two minutes, although in a few cases it is up to seven minutes.

Train departures from and arrivals to Union Station will remain the same.

The BNSF line runs between Chicago and Aurora, with stations in Naperville, Lisle and Downers Grove, among others.

The agency periodically reviews its schedules and updates them to make them "as realistic - and therefore as reliable - as possible," Executive Director Don Orseno said in a statement.

The commuter railroad also revised certain schedules for inbound trains on the Union Pacific West Line as of Sunday, Oct. 2.

Heavy traffic from freight trains using UP's Proviso rail yard near Elmhurst had caused numerous delays for commuter trains and as a result the schedule no longer represented actual operating conditions, Orseno said.

The shift affects the majority of trains leaving for Chicago after 10 a.m. on weekdays. In addition, riders boarding at Villa Park and Elmhurst will be asked to use Platform 3, the southernmost one.

UP West morning rush-hour train times are unchanged and the outbound service schedule also remains the same.

Altering departures times and moving trains to a different track should keep rail traffic flowing more smoothly, officials said.

The UP West Line connects Chicago and Elburn, with stations at Geneva, West Chicago, Winfield, Wheaton and Glen Ellyn, among others.

To learn more, go to metrarail.com.