We’re from the suburbs, and for the suburbs: since 2002, The Yard Social Club serves suburban Chicago by making transit fun. Tag along on one of our Train Crawls, or dive into our resources to plan your own suburban excursion. Give your car a break this weekend and see where transit can take you!
Train Crawl Resources
Get out and explore the suburbs on a Train Crawl: buy a Metra $10 Weekend or Day Pass, grab a schedule, and be merry throughout the six-county region all while your car rests comfortably in your garage or on your driveway.
Getting Started
Not sure where to begin planning your day riding the rails? Check out our tips and tricks based on our years of experience planning train crawls throughout Chicagoland.
The Ultimate Train Crawl Map
Check out our interactive map detailing every commuter rail station in the Chicago area with basic schedule information, station-area amenities, and some of our favorite stops throughout the region.
Travel Guides and Train Schedules
Basic information about each of the commuter rail lines serving the Chicago area, with direct links to official schedules by the service providers and our line-by-line weekday and weekend guides to help you plan your trip from start to finish. Our guides include bidirectional schedules, fare information, recommended venues, transit connections, and more.
Train Crawl Schedule Archive
Grab one of our off-the-shelf full train crawl schedules from our previous outings.
Crawl Concierge and more
Overwhelmed? Don’t want to deal with the nuts and bolts of planning a full afternoon and evening of bar-hopping? Let us know what you have in mind and we’ll take care of the rest.
Maps and Schedules
Masks are recommended while riding public transportation.
The Map
Just about every bar within walking distance of a weekend Metra station. Explore the map, or open on your mobile device for an interactive guide to bars while you’re on your train crawl.
Travel Guides
Our Travel Guides include schedules, transfer information, fares, recommended venues, and more. Click on a line name to download a PDF. NOTE: We are in the process of updating our Travel Guides for summer 2022, but additional service changes are expected as Metra gradually restores service from pandemic service cuts. For the most updated schedules, visit metra.com.
System Guide August 2021 Update!
Union Pacific North
Union Pacific Northwest
Union Pacific West
Milwaukee North
North Central Service – Weekday (pre-pandemic)
Milwaukee West
BNSF Railway
Heritage Corridor – Weekday (pre-pandemic)
SouthWest Service (pre-pandemic)
Rock Island
Metra Electric – Suburban Main Line NEW for July 2021!
Metra Electric – City Main and Branches (pre-pandemic)
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Diverging Approach
The way to really blog.
Diverging Approach: 2034sight
The 2034sight is a bold, but achievable, ten-year plan to create a regional rail network in Chicagoland.
Diverging Approach: The New NEXT
Earlier this year, I posted a screed detailing NEXT, a Near-Term Equitable eXpress Ticketing proposal that’d consolidate Metra’s current 10-zone fare structure into a three-zone fare system, with an additional three-level overlay of sorts that would require higher fares for express trains, with longer-distance express segments priced at a higher premium rate. At a high … Continue reading Diverging Approach: The New NEXT
COVID-19 Precautions
Our lives are undeniably different these days as the COVID-19 pandemic continues. Our mission is all the more important now: supporting the local businesses that make suburban downtowns walkable and pedestrian-friendly while providing a safe, fun environment to reacclimate existing, former, and potential transit users to buses and trains. The Yard Social Club remains committed to supporting our sustainable suburbia.
Masks are recommended while riding public transportation. To prevent future outbreaks, The Yard Social Club also strongly encourages everyone eligible to get vaccinated and boosted.