North Central Service

North Central Service
A North Central Service train at O'Hare Transfer in 2010.
Overview
Owner	Metra (Chicago Union Station to Franklin Park) CN (Franklin Park to Antioch)
Termini	Union Station Antioch
Stations	18
Website	metra.com/train-lines/ncs
Service
Type	Commuter rail
System	Metra
Operator	Metra
Daily ridership	5,800 (Avg. Weekday 2016)
Ridership	663,660 (2025)
History
Opened	1886 (Soo Line), August 19, 1996 (Metra)
Technical
Line length	52.9 mi (85.1 km)
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Route map North Central Service highlighted in purple Canadian National Railway Antioch coach yard 52.8 mi 85 km Antioch 48.2 mi 77.6 km Lake Villa 45.9 mi 73.9 km Round Lake Beach 43.9 mi 70.7 km Washington Street/​Grayslake Milwaukee District North Line to Fox Lake 40.7 mi 65.5 km Prairie Crossing Milwaukee District North Line to Union Station 36.9 mi 59.4 km Mundelein Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway 33.0 mi 53.1 km Vernon Hills 31.6 mi 50.9 km Prairie View 29.5 mi 47.5 km Buffalo Grove Lake County Cook County border 27.2 mi 43.8 km Wheeling 24.0 mi 38.6 km Prospect Heights Union Pacific Northwest Line to Harvard or McHenry Union Pacific Railroad Union Pacific Northwest Line to Ogilvie TC Pulse Dempster Line to Davis Street I-90 17.1 mi 27.5 km O'Hare Transfer ATS ATS Airport Transit System to terminals Blue to O'Hare │ I-190 15.6 mi 25.1 km Rosemont I-294 14.8 mi 23.8 km Schiller Park 13.0 mi 20.9 km Belmont Avenue/​Franklin Park Milwaukee District West Line to Big Timber Road Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad Canadian National Railway Des Plaines River Des Plaines River Trail 11.4 mi 18.3 km River Grove Nonstop Belt Railway of Chicago Milwaukee District North Line to Fox Lake Amtrak to Milwaukee, St. Paul, Seattle, and Portland Bloomingdale Trail Western Ave. coach yard 2.9 mi 4.7 km Western Avenue Union Pacific West Line to Elburn Chicago "L" Logan Square branch I-90 / I-94 Blue to O'Hare  Union Pacific Northwest Line to Harvard or McHenry Union Pacific North Line to Kenosha Green Pink Blue to Forest Park Ogilvie TC 0 mi Chicago Union Station BNSF Line to Aurora Heritage Corridor to Joliet SouthWest Service to Manhattan Mileage source All stations are accessible Key North Central Service Other Metra lines Metra Union Pacific lines Other freight lines CTA lines Pace Pulse Airport

The North Central Service (NCS) is a Metra commuter rail line running from Union Station in downtown Chicago through northwestern and far northern suburbs to Antioch, Illinois. In December 2022, the public timetable shows seven weekday departures from Chicago. This line does not run at all on weekends or holidays. While Metra does not explicitly refer to any of its eleven routes by colors, the NCS' timetable accents are lavender, a shade of purple. It is one of two Metra lines (the other being the Union Pacific West Line) that do not have a specific color for a fallen flag railroad that used to operate on the route.

Between Union Station and River Grove, the North Central Service shares tracks with the Milwaukee District West Line, but does not stop at any of the intermediate stations used by the MD-W between Western Avenue and River Grove. In Franklin Park, Illinois, this route turns north at a junction known as Tower B-12. The rest of the route operates on the Canadian National Railway's Waukesha Subdivision. Until 2020, a single daily inbound train, no. 120, made all stops along the North Central Service from Antioch to Washington Street, then switched to the Milwaukee District North Line's tracks at a diamond near Prairie Crossing station, made stops at Libertyville and Lake Forest, and then ran as an express to Union Station.

The CN assumed ownership of this route on September 7, 2001, when it absorbed the Wisconsin Central Railroad ("WC"). The WC operated on this route after it was purchased from the Soo Line Railroad in April 1987. Metra provides its own crews for this service (like with most routes) and operates under a trackage rights agreement with the CN.

Service began August 19, 1996. As of 2026, this is the only new commuter line in the Metra system since its formation. Prior to the start of NCS, the last passenger service on this route ended in January 1965, when the Soo Line discontinued the overnight Chicago-Duluth Laker.

The North Central Service serves O'Hare International Airport, but with a limited number of trains. O'Hare has much more frequent service from the CTA Blue Line.

As of February 15, 2024, Metra operates 14 trains (seven in each direction) on the line on weekdays, with all trains running the full length of the route from Antioch to Union Station. One inbound train and one outbound train run express between Western Avenue and Wheeling.

Like the Heritage Corridor and SouthWest Service, the North Central Service is fully ADA-accessible.

No tickets are sold at any North Central Service stations outside Chicago. Passengers must purchase tickets either on the train or with Ventra.

Recent history

On January 30, 2006, four new stations on the North Central Service opened: Belmont Avenue in Franklin Park, Schiller Park, Rosemont, and Washington Street in Grayslake. Service doubled from 10 to 20 trains per day with this change in the timetable, combined with double tracking of large portions of the line and the CN rerouting freight traffic south of Mundelein.

On September 11, 2006, service expanded from 20 to 22 trains when Metra split one rush-hour local train in each direction into two express trains.

Notably, the line goes through Des Plaines but does not have a station there. The station in Des Plaines was on Thacker Street and closed in 1965. However, Des Plaines is currently serviced by the Union Pacific Northwest Line.

Metra has considered adding weekend service to the North Central Service ever since Saturday service was added to the SouthWest Service, and has also considered operating six trains between Chicago and Antioch, like the SouthWest Service.

On February 5, 2018, service was reduced from 22 to 20 trains when Metra combined two rush-hour express trains into one rush hour semi-express.

As of April 2021, NCS service is limited to rush hours in the peak direction only–towards Chicago in the morning and towards Antioch in the afternoon. This makes the NCS one of 3 Metra lines (along with the Heritage Corridor and the SouthWest Service) to only offer peak service.

From August 12–30, 2024 during the 2024 Democratic National Convention, Metra operated expanded NCS service. The regularly scheduled weekday trains were supplemented by 15 hourly round trips between O'Hare Transfer station and Union Station, making only intermediate stops at River Grove and Western Avenue. On weekends, there were 16 hourly round trips serving the same stations, with no service north of O'Hare Transfer.

Ridership

Between 2014 and 2019, annual ridership declined 12.5% from 1,817,335 to 1,589,905. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, ridership dropped to 340,682 passengers in 2020 and to 146,668 passengers in 2021. As of October 2024, ridership is at 41% of its October 2019 total (compared to a 63% recovery rate system-wide). Similar to other lines, midday ridership is almost at pre-pandemic levels, with ridership during peak hours being proportionally less-recovered. The line's 663,660 riders in 2025 made it the tenth most used Metra line as well as the second least used.

500,000

1,000,000

1,500,000

2,000,000

2004

2008

2012

2016

2020

2024

Stations

County	Zone	Location	Station	Connections and notes
Lake	4	Antioch	Antioch	Western Transit: Antioch Service
		Lake Villa	Lake Villa
		Round Lake Beach	Round Lake Beach
		Grayslake	Washington Street
		Libertyville	Prairie Crossing	Metra: Milwaukee District North
		Mundelein	Mundelein	Pace: 572, 574
		Vernon Hills	Vernon Hills
		Prairie View	Prairie View
		Buffalo Grove	Buffalo Grove	Pace: 234, 272, 626
Cook	3	Wheeling	Wheeling	Pace: 234
		Prospect Heights	Prospect Heights	Pace: 221
	2	Chicago	O'Hare Transfer	ATS to O'Hare International Airport Pace Pulse: ■ Dempster Line Pace: 250, 330
		Rosemont	Rosemont	Pace: 330
		Schiller Park	Schiller Park
		Franklin Park	Belmont Avenue/​Franklin Park	Pace: 319
		River Grove	River Grove	Metra: Milwaukee District West Pace: 319, 331
		Chicago	Western Avenue	Metra: Milwaukee District North, Milwaukee District West CTA buses:  49   X49   65
	1		Union Station	Amtrak (long-distance): California Zephyr, Cardinal, City of New Orleans, Empire Builder, Floridian, Lake Shore Limited, Southwest Chief, Texas Eagle Amtrak (intercity): Blue Water, Borealis, Hiawatha, Illini and Saluki, Illinois Zephyr and Carl Sandburg, Lincoln Service, Pere Marquette, Wolverine Metra: BNSF, Heritage Corridor, Milwaukee District North, Milwaukee District West, SouthWest Service Chicago "L": Blue (at Clinton), Brown Orange Pink Purple (at Quincy) CTA buses:  1   7   J14   19   28   56   60   120   121   124   125   126   128   130   151   156   157   192  Pace: 755 Amtrak Thruway: Chicago–Madison and Chicago–Rockford (Van Galder), Chicago–Louisville (Greyhound)

References

• J. David Ingles, Ready or not, here we come, Trains November 1996

External links

Template:Attached KML/North Central Service

KML is from Wikidata

Media related to Metra North Central Service at Wikimedia Commons

• Metra North Central Service schedule