Photo Joe Lewnard/jlewnard@dailyherald.com
Railway fans greet a vintage Nickel Plate 765 or “Berkshire” steam locomotive traveling near Libertyville in 2016.

Railroads made Chicago, stealing commerce from steamboat hubs like St. Louis. But it’s a love-hate relationship in the suburbs and Chicago today.

•September 26, 2018•

By Marni Pyke
Of the Daily Herald

Trains brought Abraham Lincoln’s body home to Illinois, transported southern blacks escaping Jim Crow laws to Chicago, and now carry a labor force of thousands between the suburbs and downtown Chicago daily.
Freight, passenger and commuter trains pass through the Chicago area at the rate of 1,300 a day, Illinois Department of Transportation says, and rail lines fan out in every direction.
“People in Illinois are as intimately tied to railroading as anywhere in the country,” DePaul University transportation professor Joseph Schwieterman said. “Millions live close to busy rail lines, use commuter or intercity passenger trains, or cross busy sets of tracks every day, giving them a strong psychological connection to railroads.”
But being the rail hub of the nation also has its downside: Meager funding for commuter rail, crossing delays, and freight gridlock are among the challenges facing the state in the 21st century.     Login or Subscribe to read the rest of this story.