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Permalink Reply by Rich S on May 18, 2015 at 5:00am

Best bet is to look at the schedule for the line in question. Click here for the MD-W as a sample. 

At the bottom of each column it's stated how many bikes allowed per train. If it's blank then no bikes. Besides that be aware of blackout dates such as Air & Water Show Weekend. And don't forget to bring a bungee to secure your bike once on board. 

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Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on May 18, 2015 at 5:49am

Unfortunately, something happened to the "bikes allowed" info with some recent change to the Metra web site.  Now the Rock Island does not show ANY info on # of bikes allowed, and info is missing on some other lines, as with the example you described.

If you're getting trying to bring your bike on a BNSF or MD-W train leaving downtown after 7:00 p.m. on most days, you should not be turned away.

To anyone who's frustrated by this web site snafu, I encourage you to send comments to Metra and ask them to fix it. 

Online comment form: http://metrarail.com/content/metra/en/home/about_metra/contact_metr...

or email address: metrarail_feedback@metrarr.com

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Permalink Reply by Eli on May 20, 2015 at 6:15am

Thank you both for the responses; I was able to ride on the 8:20 BNSF out of Aurora with no problems. I will send them an e-mail noting the issue with their web schedule finder.

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Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on May 20, 2015 at 8:59am

Glad to hear that it worked out.

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Permalink Reply by Shawn Evans on May 20, 2015 at 8:37am

I never use the Schedule Finder.

Just click on 'Download PDF Schedule' and you get the same brochure they have at the station. All the bikes allowed are there. BNSF allows 10 bikes on trains leaving Chicago at 7:40 PM, 8:40 PM, etc (but only 5 bikes on the train arriving in Chicago at 6:22 AM. That's odd).

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Permalink Reply by Eli on May 20, 2015 at 8:58am

Yes--thus far I've been lucky and never been barred from a train on which bikes are nominally allowed, but I always worry about getting stranded this way.

(Last year my girlfriend and I took the UP-NW one Saturday (with our heavily-loaded bikes) to go camping at Marengo Ridge; unbeknownst to us it was Kentucky Derby day and the train quickly filled with mint-julep-drinking seersucker-clad revelers headed to the Arlington racetrack to watch the race. It was more crowded than I've ever seen a Metra train, and the conductor gave up on even trying to check tickets or collect fares. Eventually he confronted us, asking when we'd gotten on, and angrily told us that if he'd seen us boarding he would have stopped us. But fortunately he didn't throw us off. Since then I've made doubly sure every time I ride the UP-NW in the spring that it's not Derby weekend.)

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Permalink Reply by Rich S on May 20, 2015 at 9:05am

That's also a risk with big music festivals at Ravinia when riding the UP-N line. At least then it's not too far south to catch the purple line back into the city. 

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Permalink Reply by Shawn Evans on May 20, 2015 at 9:37pm

I would avoid the most popular Metra trains on the weekend during the summer, particularly if you're boarding in the middle of the route. So, UP-N, UP-NW, BNSF, there's a good chance they'll be 'full' (or what the conductor considers full). Take an early train, or get on near the beginning of the route if you want a space for your bike.

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