Heritage Corridor

Heritage Corridor
Heritage Corridor inbound train preparing to board passengers at Joliet station in Joliet, Illinois
Overview
OwnerCanadian National
Termini
Stations7
Service
TypeCommuter rail
SystemMetra
Operator(s)Metra, Canadian National
Daily ridership2,400 (Avg. Weekday 2016)[1]
Ridership252,907 (2023)
Technical
Line length37.3 mi (60.0 km)
Number of tracks2
Track gauge4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Route map
Map Heritage Corridor highlighted in maroon
Legend
 enlarge… NCS to Antioch
enlarge… MD-W to Big Timber Road
enlarge… MD-N to Fox Lake
0 mi
 Union Station Amtrak
Blue
 enlarge… BNSF to Aurora
Chicago River (south branch)
IC West Line
to Randolph Street Station
 enlarge… SWS to Manhattan
Orange to the Loop
I-90.svgI-94.svg I-90 / I-94
2.6 mi
4.2 km
Halsted Street Metra | Halsted
Bubbly Creek
I-55.svg I-55
IC West Line
to Addison
Orange to Midway
Western Avenue Corridor
5.2 mi
8.4 km
Brighton Park
BNSF Railway
Belt Railway of Chicago
10.3 mi
16.6 km
Glenn
11.9 mi
19.2 km
 Summit Amtrak
Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad
I-294.svg I-294
Mt. Forest
17.5 mi
28.2 km
 Willow Springs
Cal-Sag Channel
Lambert
25.3 mi
40.7 km
 Lemont
I-355.svg I-355
29.2 mi
47 km
 Romeoville
31.7 mi
51 km
5th Street
32.9 mi
52.9 km
 Lockport
EJ&E Railway
State Prison
 enlarge… RI to LaSalle Street
37.3 mi
60 km
 Joliet Amtrak
LowerLeft arrow CSX Transportation
Amtrak
Amtrak to St. Louis,
San Antonio, and Los Angeles
Mileage[2]
source
Handicapped/disabled accessAll stations are accessible
 
Key
 Heritage Corridor
Other Metra lines
Other freight lines
CTA lines
This diagram:
For the public park system, see National Heritage Corridor.

The Heritage Corridor (HC) is a Metra commuter rail line in Chicago, Illinois, and its southwestern suburbs, terminating in Joliet, Illinois. While Metra does not refer to its lines by colors, the Heritage Corridor appears on Metra timetables as "Alton Maroon," after the Alton Railroad, which ran trains on this route.[3] The name Heritage Corridor refers to the Illinois and Michigan Canal Heritage Corridor. Established in 1984, it runs parallel to the line.[4]

Unlike other Metra lines, the Heritage Corridor runs during weekday rush hours only in the peak direction–to Chicago in the morning and Joliet in the afternoon, with the trip from Joliet to Union Station taking about 1 hour and 7 minutes.[5] The Rock Island District also serves Joliet with 21 trains.

As of February 15, 2024, Metra operates six trains (three in each direction) on the Heritage Corridor on weekdays, with each train serving all stations on the route. All inbound trains originate from Joliet in the morning, and all outbound trains terminate at Joliet in the afternoon. Except for occasional seasonal excursion services,[6][7] there is no Saturday service. There is currently no off-peak, Sunday, or holiday service on the Heritage Corridor.

The Heritage Corridor has the lowest train frequency and fewest number of stations of any other Metra line.

Like the North Central Service and the SouthWest Service, all stations on the route are fully ADA-accessible.

  1. ^ "Operations and Ridership Data". Metra. Archived from the original on March 31, 2020. Retrieved October 7, 2017.
  2. ^ State of the System - Heritage Corridor
  3. ^ "Did you know?" (PDF). On the Bi-Level: 3. June 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-01-02.
  4. ^ Baty (2004), 237-238.
  5. ^ "Heritage Corridor | Metra". ridertools.metrarail.com. Retrieved 2024-01-12.
  6. ^ Earnest, Andrea (20 September 2024). "Metra Offers Special Saturday Service Along Heritage Corridor Line". Patch. Retrieved 26 September 2024.
  7. ^ "Metra's 'Rails, Trails and Ales' program returns on Heritage Corridor". Trains. 22 August 2023. Retrieved 26 September 2024.