Operation North Pole Christmas train across Metra lines

Operation North Pole Christmas train is heading back onto Metra’s tracks after a five-year hiatus. As Metra reports, on Saturday, Dec. 20, Chicago-area residents are invited to line the Union Pacific Northwest Line and cheer seriously and terminally ill children and their families along this annual holiday trip.

This is reported by the railway transport news portal Railway Supply.

Holiday experience for seriously and terminally ill children

Operation North Pole (ONP), launched in 2009, together with its volunteers runs a full-day Christmas celebration for children and families affected by illness. The North Pole Christmas train trip centers on a special ride to the “North Pole” to meet Santa. Since 2011, the train’s exterior has carried a charity-sponsored holiday design, so the consist has become a familiar seasonal sight for the Chicago North Pole Christmas train Metra riders watch for each year.

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This season, the Metra holiday train’s exterior features characters from the Nutcracker, while inside, Metra employees have turned each car into a themed setting with lights, tinsel, and decorations such as Santa’s Workshop, the Grinch, and Candyland.

Metra Operation North Pole holiday train in regular service

Beyond the dedicated ONP trip, the specially decorated consist also appears in regular Metra service as the Metra Operation North Pole holiday train. Beginning Dec. 8, it runs on Metra’s three Union Pacific lines and takes part in Metra’s Holiday Train event on the Union Pacific Northwest Line on Dec. 13.

Outside of the ONP and Metra holiday train events, the decorated train is scheduled for regular service on the UP Northwest Line from Dec. 8 through Dec. 14, on the UP North Line from Dec. 15 through Dec. 21, and on the UP West Line from Dec. 22 through Jan. 2, giving more passengers the chance to ride the festive train on their usual journeys.

Operation North Pole Christmas train route and schedule

ONP is inviting the public to see the latest version of its holiday train and to cheer for the families as they travel to the North Pole. Because the event involves numerous buses and escort vehicles and must accommodate the needs of participating families, spectators are strongly encouraged to choose viewing spots north of the Des Plaines Metra Station, from Cumberland Station up to Crystal Lake Pingree Road Station.

For those tracking Metra Union Pacific Northwest Line Operation North Pole train times, the ONP train is expected to pass through the following communities on Saturday, Dec. 20:

• 12:30 p.m. – departure from Pingree Road Station in Crystal Lake

• 12:35 p.m. – Cary Station

• 12:38 p.m. – Fox River Grove Station

• 12:44 p.m. – Barrington Station (Pack the train station charity event)

• 12:51 p.m. – Palatine Station

• 12:55 p.m. – Arlington Park Station

• 12:58 p.m. – Arlington Heights Station

• 1:06 p.m. – Cumberland Station

• 1:10 p.m. – arrival at the “North Pole” (Des Plaines Station)

Community celebrations from Barrington Station to the North Pole

Community partners along the route are planning their own celebrations around the Operation North Pole Christmas train schedule Dec. 20. At Barrington Station, the Barrington Chamber of Commerce will host a Barrington Station charity event to support Operation North Pole and raise funds for several good causes while welcoming the families and the train.

At Pingree Road Station, Crystal Lake Fire Rescue Department, Crystal Lake Police Department, the McHenry County Fire Department, and local schoolchildren will greet participants by singing carols on the platform and handing out treats onboard.

When the train reaches the North Pole in Des Plaines, Santa and Mrs. Claus, joined by a team of local firefighters and police officers, will escort the families to a winter wonderland at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont.

There, children and their families will spend the afternoon with dancing, food, candy, music, games, presents, and special time with Santa, making the Metra Operation North Pole holiday train events at Donald E. Stephens Convention Center Rosemont the centerpiece of the day. Similar festive charity trains run across North America, as Railway Supply has covered in its reporting on holiday train initiatives.

To learn more about ONP’s mission, or to find out how to support or donate to Operation North Pole Chicago as a volunteer or contributor, readers are invited to visit the organization’s website at operationnorthpole.org, where additional details about the program and its activities are available.

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