BNSF chicago-aurora raceway

I am a ex CSX now amtrak engineer of 15 years. i was curious of the amout of trains that ply this route the types amout daily and speed limits and best places to railfan. i heard around naperville and Eola. Heard a fellow railhead out.
craig

Hardly ever a dull moment on BNSF's Chicago sub, with plenty of freights of all shapes and sizes, from hot-shot intermodals to long coal drags (loads and empties) to general manifest. While the majority of the freights will have BNSF power in the lead, it's not uncommon to see locomotives from the other five class 1's leading trains on this route. Throw in 94 Metra trains, plus 8 more Amtrak runs, and you've got one of the busiest railroads in the country. General speed limits are 70mph for Metra/Amtrak (pretty much applies to just Amtrak, only Metra's Naperville expresses approach that speed) and 45mph for freights; though the freights are a little slower toward the east end...

Generally, anything west of the BRC & IHB lines gets busier with run through freight from other lines. Not sure how much CN's purchase of EJ&E may change things in the future. Many downtown suburban stations have stores & other eateries nearby. From now on you may want to watch the weather for temps. I'm not sure how much snow/cold for this season. Some like Napervile & Lisle stations where there is a passage under the track to get from north to south. Do take care to watch both directions if crossing any tracks. IIRC some of the Metra runs go to Downer's Grove only where Metra reverses direction & runs inbound to get another run out.

Mr. Doepack is roundly "on mark" with the passenger train count. Throw in some 50 freight movements and we are talking one busy stretch of railroad. Sometimes, there is simply "too much action', such as when you are viewing an on-time Amtrak #4 only to have that view interrupted by Amtrak #5 "meeting' at Clarendon Hills.

Most every day, I will get in a walk from my home @ MP 18.70 (the 18.34 is where my office was located when I was in practice; 18.32 is Prospect St - main drag through downtown Clarendon Hills) to West Hinsdale @ MP 17.92 (Stough St) and return; usual "count' is five trains of all varietals.

The racetrack is the only stretch of railroading I've ever seen where you can sit at an intermediate station and watch three express (two of them inbound or outbound, depending on if it's the morning or evening rush, respectively) blow by at exactly the same time. During rush hour, it's got to be one of the top two or three busiest heavy-rail mainlines in North America.

Dispatchers try to avoid running freight trains during rush hour, so that the "dinkies" (METRA trains) can get through with less hassle. Sometimes you will hear crews and dispatchers refer to rush hour as the "dinky parade."

I was just out in Downer's Grove back on Labor Day weekend.

The afternoon rush is a sight to see- it's literally one passenger train after another. The action is non-stop.

I also like Berwyn as well- The CN crosses the race track there.

Good luck-

Matt

Thanks for the help. I'd take my NE corridor anyday(counting LIRR hotspots also)but this has to be the second best place to railfan in the country. if you like passenger trains

There is a cemetary on the east side of Naperville which borders the "racetrack" right at the infamous Naperville Curve. One can park legally there and then walk over to the r/o/w to watch/photograph the parade. At least that was the how I found it back in the M/1980s.

Why are BNSF freights limited to 45mph. i mean damn thats slow.

It seems freights do closer to 60 through the Naperville and Route 59 stations, but they move pretty good through all of the stations west of Berwyn. Some spots I commonly go to are LaVergne in Berwyn, Brookfield, Westmont and Naperville. If you go east of Congress Park during the rush, you get basically everything, as every Metra train that runs during the rush will pass through those points. A lot of the trains flip back in Downers Grove, so if you go to Lisle, Naperville or Route 59, it isn't quite as busy.

Unless TT speed has changed, it was 40 to DG, then 45 west of there. The blocks are very short, even with a flasher before the approach, there is not much time to react and stop. According to BNSF signal rules Approach is reduce to 40mph prepared to stop at the next signal. On this sub it is reduce to 30mph, prepared to stop at the next signal.

R40, Chicago overall is a fantastic place to enjoy trains. We've got the best variety of anywhere in the country - heavy freights, heavy passenger, electric passenger, shortlines, yards, harbors, steel mills, and five terminal railroads (EJ&E, IHB, BRC, CHTT, B&OCT) even though most are now property of one/many class ones. The Aurora line is one of the best places to catch lots of fast moving trains.