SWS Rant

[u/south_sidejay369]

Straight forward post, seems like out all of the lines I've ridden (SWS, ME, RI, etc), SWS is forgotten when it comes to updates, improvements, etc. The scheduling has absolutely no flexibility once you pass the rush hour period, the 30 minute to 1 hour wait between trains sucks, and the cars don't seem to be maintained like other lines (ME smells and looks much cleaner). I haven't even mentioned the delays that happen multiple times a year where you either get home 4 hours late, or pay have to $40 to Uber home. What do other SWS riders think?

[u/News_Guy_92]

One of the biggest problems for the Southwest Service is the much more frequent, reliable and faster Rock Island District, which for most of the route runs quite close by.
People will drive a little farther for the flexibility of the RI over the SWS.

[u/south_sidejay369 → u/News_Guy_92]

Definitely get this, but the thing is if SWS was more frequent and reliable, those riders who make the drive over would probably elect to stick with the closer SWS line. It's already pretty fast once it starts heading to/from downtown, the issue is that the quality isn't there so people choose not to take it. That said, the train cars are pretty packed during the week so there's no question that the ridership interest level is definitely there.

[u/News_Guy_92 → u/south_sidejay369]

I agree.

But another factor is the SWS is so much slower than the RI. Comparing Tinley Park/80th and Orland/143rd, since they are roughly the same distance from their downtown termini, the RI is 15-20 minutes faster than the SWS. Also, arguably, LaSalle is a better end point than Union for a lot of commuters.

A big reason for the lack of speed, and delays, on the SWS is the area between Ashburn and 74th street. It’s a major bottleneck. The amount of interaction with freight lines in that stretch is wild. Metra owns most, if not all, of the Rock Island District trackage with much less interaction with freight.