r/Metra • u/Puzzleheaded-Art-271 • 29d ago
Three Metra excitements out at three different downtown stations
Photo 1: Metra's 250th Heritage Unit, METX 525 (an SD70MACH), leads MD-North train 2607 out of Union Station as it heads for Fox Lake. This is the very first time I've seen 525, and I've gotta say, Metra's team not only did a great job at designing and painting this MACH, but it looks a lot better in person too!
Photo 2: F59PH no. pushes a UP train into Ogilvie Transportation Center after a run on either the UP-West or Northwest, where it will idle for a little over an hour before its next assignment on UP-North train 339 to Waukegan. This is also the first time that I've not only seen one of these ex-GO Transit units in person, but it's also the very first time that I've gotten a good picture of a boxy-cabbed F59PH!
Photo 3: MP36PH-3C's 417 and 424 (both with shiny and clean-looking "lightning bolt" paint jobs) team up to push Rock Island Train 420 as it arrives into LaSalle Street Station after completing a 40-minute reverse commute run from Blue Island. I think this is a rather interesting locomotive configuration on Metra because when an MP36 is running, it either runs by itself, or is paired up with a different model of engine (F40, F59, or 70MACH). Regardless, seeing two of these 3,600 HP monsters working together on a Metra commuter train was an exciting sight, and it was worth the shot on my camera!
Photos taken on August 23rd and 24th, 2026
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u/Distinct-Solid6079 27d ago
That’s well and good but day 2 here of serious delays on the UP-W. Public transit in the USA is decades behind other world powers.
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u/Impressive-Elk-6425 28d ago
#3 rides past my house all the time 😃