Experience the Harvard Subdivision's commuter rail operations from Chicago to Harvard, Illinois, on this simulation route. The line features quad tracks from Ogilvie Transportation Center through downtown Chicago, shifting to triple and double tracks north to Harvard, with a single track extension toward Evansville, Wisconsin. Metra services share 85 miles with Union Pacific freight, running left-handed, and connect at Crystal Lake to the McHenry Subdivision for limited weekday runs.
Drive six passenger sessions in varied weather: Morning Express on Train 620, Snow Storm on 709, Winter Morning on 634, Evening Express on 633, Stormy Weather on 714, and a run to Crystal Lake on 715. Built with Surveyor 2.0 tools during Trainz Plus beta, the route blends prototype accuracy after Crystal Lake with earlier non-prototype sections. Rail enthusiasts who enjoy authentic commuter simulation thrive on these detailed scenarios.
The Harvard Subdivision was previously owned and operated by the Chicago and Northwestern railroad until the merge in 1995 with the now known railroad as Union Pacific. The line goes from Chicago, Illinois to Evansville, Wisconsin which is approximately 102 miles apart. Out of the 102 miles, approximately 85 miles of it is used by both freight and Metra commuter trains.
For Metra, the line starts at Ogilvie Transportation Center in downtown Chicago and is a quad-track to CY tower just south of Clybourn station. There the Harvard Subdivision meets the Kenosha Subdivision with two tracks heading north to Kenosha, Wisconsin and the Harvard Subdivision becomes a triple track to just southeast of Barrington station. From Barrington to Harvard the line is double track until it reaches Harvard where it becomes single track and heads to Evansville, Wisconsin.
At Crystal Lake, the Harvard Subdivision meets the McHenry Subdivision which carries some freight and commuter service (weekdays only).
All trains on Union Pacific’s tracks run left-handed.
The Harvard Subdivision: Commuter Edition DLC pack features 6 commuter passenger service sessions through a variety of conditions:
Train 620 - Morning Express
Train 709 - Snow Storm
Train 634 - Winter Morning
Train 633 - Evening Express
Train 714 - Stormy Weather
Train 715 - to Crystal Lake
Route development notes:
--- The route was original supposed to be non- prototype with prototype trackwork. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen and after Crystal Lake it eventually become a prototype route. I debated myself if I should rebuild Harvard or not but at the end of the day, I decided to keep it as-is as it shows they started to change and expand from their tiny town to a larger town.
--- The route was developed during the beta days of TRS22 using the newest features Trainz Plus had to offer which was Surveyor 2.0. Between using S1.0 and S2.0 creating scenes and cities helped a lot and moving / adjusting items has been made easier.
Please note: the Commuter Edition features only the commuter train service lines and not the entire route (I.E. From Chicago, IL to Harvard, IL only and not from Chicago, IL to Evansville, WI).
Developed by Hiawathamr Trainz Add-ons
