Joliet Rock Island Metra users to see schedule changes coming Monday

Changes being made to weekday and weekend schedules

Passengers walk along the new Metra Rock Island District platform after arriving downtown on a train Friday, Sept. 26, 2014. Metra and Amtrak trains will no longer be arriving at Joliet's Union Station as construction of the new Joliet Gateway Center continues.

Metra will be making minor changes to the schedules of three trains on its Rock Island Line to Joliet beginning Monday, Nov. 27.

These schedule adjustments are being made to better reflect operating conditions, improve on-time performance and provide better evening service on weeknights for people attending events downtown, according to a news release from Metra.

Metra last updated the Rock Island schedule in March 2021. Metra will monitor ridership on all its lines and revise schedules when necessary to better match operating actual conditions and to accommodate increased passenger volumes, according to the release.

The following is the schedule revision sent out by Metra on Monday:

Weekday inbound

  • The station stop times for Trains 602, 604, 606, 608, 610 and 632 are being adjusted to one minute earlier from Gresham to LaSalle Street.
  • Trains 300, 302 and 304 will depart Tinley Park/80th Avenue three minutes later.
  • Midday trains (Trains 612 through 630) originating in Blue Island have one minute added between the 107th Street and 103rd Street stops.
  • Evening Trains 512 and 514 will depart Joliet 15 minutes later.
  • Train 518, the last inbound train, now will depart Joliet 45 minutes later at 10:30 p.m.
  • Gresham will convert from a flag stop to a scheduled stop for Trains 632, 512, 514, 516 and 518.
  • 35th Street/“Lou Jones” will convert from a flag stop to a scheduled stop on all trains.

Weekday outbound

  • Train 401 will depart LaSalle Street five minutes earlier at 6:25 a.m.
  • Trains 605, 607, 609, 611, 613, 615, 617 and 619 have added between one and three minutes to station stops from Gresham to Blue Island.
  • Train 419 now will arrive in Joliet two minutes later at 4:02 p.m.
  • Train 631 has adjusted stop times by one minute between Brainerd and Blue Island.
  • To better serve customers attending events in the city, late evening outbound trains will have new departure times:
    • Train 511 will depart LaSalle Street 25 minutes later at 8:25 p.m.
    • Train 513 will depart LaSalle Street 10 minutes later at 9:25 p.m.
    • Train 515 will depart LaSalle Street 15 minutes later at 10:45 p.m.
    • Train 517 will depart LaSalle Street 40 minutes later at 12:25 a.m.
  • Gresham will convert from a flag stop to a scheduled stop for Trains 511, 513, 515 and 517.
  • 35th Street/“Lou Jones” will convert from a flag stop to a scheduled stop on all trains.

Weekend Schedules

  • The weekend schedule has been revamped with updated train departure/stop times and patterns that mimic the weekday schedule.
  • Trains assigned 200 numbers will now make flag stops from Prairie Street to Brainerd.
  • 35th St./ “Lou Jones” will convert from a flag stop to a scheduled stop on all trains.
  • The weekend outbound schedule will now have two “Saturday Only” trains instead of three. One of the previously listed “Saturday Only” trains will now be offered on both Saturday and Sunday.
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