UPDATE 3:45PM WEDNESDAY, FEB. 10

Metra West Line commuters should continue to expect delays of 20 to 30 minutes per train for the remainder of Wednesday until at least midday Thursday.

Repairs continue today (Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2016) to a facility that controls the switches and signals in the vicinity of 25^th Avenue between the Melrose Park and Berkeley stations, Metra said in a news release. The facility was damaged in a fire Tuesday morning and is on track to be rebuilt and back in service by midday Thursday.

Until then, all UP West Line trains, including 60 Metra commuter trains and all freight traffic, must stop, get permission to proceed and then travel at restricted speeds through the two-mile area. Based on our experience with the rush periods on Tuesday night and this morning, we have reduced the expected delays to trains passing through the affected area to up to 20 minutes from up to 30 minutes.

While most inbound and outbound trains are expected to depart on time, they could incur delays of up to 20 minutes en route until the afternoon rush hour on Thursday, Feb. 11. Departures later in the rush hour will be delayed because the train sets used in those trips will have been slowed passing through the affected area during earlier rush-hour trips.

For the Wednesday evening rush hour, the following changes will be made:

• No. 43, departing Ogilvie at 4:17 p.m. will not operate.
• No. 59, departing Ogilvie at 5:46 p.m. will not operate.
• No. 60, arriving Ogilvie at 6:54 p.m. will not operate.
• No. 41, departing Ogilvie at 4:11 p.m., and No. 57, departing Ogilvie at 5:42 p.m., will make extra stops at Melrose Park and Maywood.
• No. 45, departing Ogilvie at 4:35 p.m., and No. 61, departing Ogilvie at 6:10 p.m., will make extra stops at Bellwood and Berkeley.

For Thursday morning’s rush hour, the following changes will be made:

• No. 17, departing Ogilvie at 6:57 a.m., will not operate.
• No. 28, arriving Ogilvie at 8:10 a.m., will not operate. Passengers who normally board No. 28 at Berkeley, Bellwood, Melrose Park and Maywood will be accommodated by No. 34, which arrives Ogilvie at 8:37 a.m.
• No. 32, which arrives Ogilvie at 8:23 a.m., will make extra stops at River Forest and Oak Park.

Metra and Union Pacific are urging customers to plan accordingly, make other travel plans or take earlier trains in order to reach their destinations on time. Metra will provide the most up-to-date information as it becomes available via our email alerts, UP West Line Twitter feed and www.metrarail.com.

“Metra and Union Pacific sincerely apologize for these delays and changes,” Metra says on its website. “We ask for your patience and understanding as we work to restore normal service as soon as possible.”

POSTED 4:24 PM TUESDAY, FEB. 9

Metra West Line commuters in Kane County can expect delays for the next two days following a fire to Metra’s “nerve center” between the Melrose Park and Berkeley Stations.

This morning (Tuesday, Feb. 9, 2016), a fire caused by an electrical short resulted in extensive damage to a facility that controls all the switches and signals in the vicinity of 25^th Avenue, Metra said in a Tuesday-afternoon news release.

The facility, which can be compared to a nerve center controlling all trains in the area, must be reconstructed and then must undergo extensive testing for safety reasons, a process which Union Pacific Railroad expects will take until midday on Thursday. Thousands of wires will need to be replaced.

Metra says crews will be working around-the-clock for the next 48 hours to fix these problems and Union Pacific is currently working to reroute freight traffic to minimize interference with commuter trains in the area.

However, until the facility becomes operational again, all UP West Line trains, including 60 Metra commuter trains and all freight traffic, must stop, get permission to proceed and then travel at restricted speeds through the two-mile area.

This means that while most inbound and outbound trains are expected to depart on time, they could incur delays of up to 30 minutes en route from now through the afternoon rush hour on Thursday, Feb. 11. Departures later in the rush will be delayed because the train sets used in those trips will have been slowed passing through the affected area during earlier rush-hour trips.

For this evening rush hour, the following trains are annulled:

• No. 43, departing Ogilvie at 4:17 p.m.
• No. 59, departing Ogilvie at 5:46 p.m.
• No. 60, arriving Ogilvie at 6:54 p.m.

In addition,

• No. 41, departing Ogilvie at 4:11 p.m., and No. 57, departing Ogilvie at 5:42 p.m., will make extra stops at Melrose Park and Maywood.
• No. 45, departing Ogilvie at 4:35 p.m., and No. 61, departing Ogilvie at 6:10 p.m., will make extra stops at Bellwood and Berkeley

Metra and Union Pacific are urging our customers to plan accordingly and make other travel plans or take earlier trains in order to reach their destinations on time.

Metra will provide the most up-to-date information as it becomes available via our email alerts, UP West Line Twitter feed and www.metrarail.com.

“Metra and Union Pacific sincerely apologize for these delays and changes,” the news release said. “We ask for your patience and understanding as we work to restore normal service as soon as possible.”

To subscribe to Metra alerts, please visit My Metra.

SOURCE: Metra news release, website