Amtrak Illinios Central route trains.

I know that Amtrak trains using the IC main line pass through 16th St interlocking east of the Chicago Union Terminal. I was looking at a map and I can't see any way that trains could access this trackage from CUS without making a reverse move somewhere. What is going on here. Surely Amtrak doesn't make a reverse movement for every train leaving and entering CUS from the IC.

GBN can shed some more light on this, but it's my impression that a reverse move is exactly what they do. Having uncovered my ICRR book, I will investigate and reply tomorrow. Also, at one time right after Amtrak's inception, BN didn't want Amtrak tying up the interlocker, and made them go from northbound IC, over SCAL, south on GM&O, crossover at Brighton(?) and back all the way to CUS over GM&O. Stay tuned.

Outbound CN/IC trains such as #59 will leave CUS on the PRR forward operating Southward to the 16th St plant noted by Jersey Mike. There they will back through the SW quadrant to the CB&Q so that they will be facing Eastward. They then operate forward over the St Charles Air Line and converge with the IC at about 21st Street.

There is a second option available.. that is to back out of CUS through 21st street and pull through the Amtrak Connection there right on to the IC at the east end of the St Charles Airline. We did that the few times i worked 391 ( now 393) to Tolono

#58 makes a reverse move into CUS every morning. Not sure what #59 does when it leaves.

Update:

According to the book "Limiteds Along the Lakefront" IC-route Amtraks had to come north on IC, west on SCAL to the IC western lines, proceed west to the bridgeview draw, and then cross over to GM&O and back all the way up GM&O for 3+ miles to CUS. This was a 40 minute operation compared to the 10 minuted procedure used since the late 1970's, where the BN Aurora line and 16th street wye is used. I think this was due to BN's fears that Amtrak's ragtag assortment of locomotives in 1971 (many ex-PC) were not reliable and would tie up the Union Street (16th) interlocker.

Ocala Mike wrote:#58 makes a reverse move into CUS every morning. Not sure what #59 does when it leaves.

I took #59 in late December. It was set up in CUS with the engines at the station end, meaning we walked by them to board the train. It backed out of CUS south onto the BNSF, then took the Air Line over to IC as noted elsewhere.

Okay, I was a college student in Chicago starting in September 1971. When Amtrak closed the IC station, trains off the IC had to get to Union Station. Initially these included the City of New Orleans and the James Whitcomb Riley (now the Cardinal), which then ran via Kankakee and Lafayette on Penn Central.

Initially, the trains ran across the St. Charles Air Line and down onto the IC Iowa Line and went all the way to Bridgeport, where they reversed across to GM&O and backed through 21st Street into Union Station. Relatively quickly, they started running straight across the Air Line to Union Avenue Tower on the Burlington, which greatly shortened the backup move, but they did still have to back around the curve into CUS.

As far as I know, that's how the City and the trains to Carbondale are still doing it. If there was money available, the former connection between NYC and IC at Grand Crossing could be restored (it was used by NKP passenger trains to get to LaSalle St. Station). This has been proposed by the Midwest Regional Rail Initiative folks as part of their high-speed network. It might actually happen, though, because allegedly Mayor Daley is interested in seeing the SCAL abandoned so the area can be redeveloped.

Just how much time could be saved by using a connection at Grand Crossing? I seem to remember an estimate of 15 minutes, but is that really plausible?

whoops, wrong thread

It doesn't take more then 15 minutes to back off the Airline into Union Station. Personally, I don't mind the back up move, and think that the money for a direct connection could be better used somewhere else to improve rail service in Illinois.

Like interlocking the brighton junction - trains must slow to a stop just to cross a junction, and I think it's the busiest non-interlocked junction in america.

Off topic, but Brighton Park will be upgraded in about three weeks. From BNSF:

In an effort to improve steel wheel rail interchange between Norfolk Southern and both Burlington Northern Santa Fe and Union Pacific Railroads, NS is coordinating the complete replacement of signaling and ten diamonds at the Brighton Park Interlocking between Norfolk Southern’s Ashland Avenue Yard and interchanges with UP and BNSF. This project will commence on Friday, July 6th at 7 PM and is expected to be completed by 6 AM Monday, July 9th. This will entail a complete outage of the Brighton Park Interchange.

During this construction project, there will be limited rail interchange between:
§ Ashland Avenue (NS) and Corwith Yard (BNSF).
§ Ashland Avenue (NS) and Willow Springs (BNSF).
§ Ashland Avenue (NS) and all Union Pacific Intermodal facilities...Global I and Global II.

Some intermodal interchange traffic tendered to NS terminals on Thursday, Friday or Saturday July 5, 6, and 7 could be held at origin or enroute to Chicago for up to two days. Please allow for a 36 to 48 hour delay in westbound business over the Ashland Avenue Yard to BNSF Pacific Southwest Locations and all Union Pacific destinations.
§ Cleveland, Detroit and Harrisburg interchanging with the UP: Held Friday and Saturday, July 6 and 7.
§ Erail, EMT, Morrisville, Pittsburgh and Croxton interchanging with the UP: Held Thursday and Friday, July 5 and 6.
§ UP Interchange traffic originating at Norfolk and Columbus will be routed via the Landers Interchange.

Traffic moving to BNSF Pacific Northwest destinations and any traffic moving over NS-Landers Yard will not be impacted by this work.

This is the first part of the CREATE project designed to improve the movement of freight trains through Chicago. This will cause a temporary delay the weekend after the July 4th Holiday but in the long run will improve interchanges over Ashland Avenue.

The Amtrak relevance of this is that, as noted elsewhere, the Lincoln trains will be detouring while the new signals are cut in.