Does CTA physically connect w/ any railroad?

There used to be a connection at the 63rd Street Lower Yard with PC/CR, but I'm not sure if it's still in existence, either.

The connection to CR was still intact as of 1999.  Around that time they bought a small GE diesel to use for switching in the 63rd Lower Yard, including going onto the interchange track.  Art

"63rd St. Lower Yard?"  Is that on the Englewood side or the Jackson Park side?

Also, let's say that Skokie Shops wanted to load a gondola with scrap metal or rail.  I cannot see how a 50-ft. gondola would be able to negotiate the tight curves of the southside elevated in order to reach an interchange.  As far as I know, the CTA has no "shorty cars" (less than the length of an 'L car and narrow enough to clear the platforms and 3rd rail) that could handle those shipments.

Someone will speak more authoritatively than I; but in the interim my guess is that 63rd is no longer connected; and that is on the "Jackson" East 63rd side.  The 63rd/Ashland branch begins at 58th St.

Seems to me the Lake St Elevated had a connection to the C&NW on the West Side many years ago.

All new trains arrive by truck, and everything else is quite small and could be trucked in and out as well, including snow jet blowers & sweepers, a telescoping crane, and track maintenance machines.  The CTA also has flat cars, differential dump gondolas, and lower profile ballast hoppers in work trains powered currently by 2000-series cars that were retired from revenue service.

Unless you mean scrap track materials, why would CTA want to haul scrap metal or go to the trouble?  Actually, they use flat cars for the former and then transfer to truck if they can't get a truck along the tracks, for instance an expressway shoulder.  Railroads don't want to be bothered with such low volume business either.

In contrast, the New York City Trransit Authority still has rail connections to the LIRR and the New York and Atlantic via tracks running west from the portal of the "D" West End Line's connection to the "N" and "R" in the Brookly Fourth Avenue Subway, approximately 39th Street and Fifht Avenue.  These tracks then connect with Bush Terminal which is largely street-running but with railroad clearances, and then to both the LIRR (NY and Atlantic) and Cross Harbor.   The connecting tracks are theoretically owned by the South Brooklyn Railroad which stil the terminating carrier for new car deliveries, all by rail or rail-car-float-rail, to the Transit Authority.  The tracks are also useful when the overall MTA wants to run speed tests on subway equipment on the tracks of the LIRR (compatable third rail and power, slightly higher car floors and platforms), which occurs now and then.  An LIRR caboose is now part of the Transit Musuem's collection and was transferred over these tracks.  The SBRY still retains its reporting marks, but as far as I know, the Transit Authority is its last and only customer as well as its owner.   Use to have freight sidings all over Brooklyn with freight operation over trolley tracks and the Sea Beach and West End subway line tracks.

HarveyK400

Someone will speak more authoritatively than I; but in the interim my guess is that 63rd is no longer connected; and that is on the "Jackson" East 63rd side.  The 63rd/Ashland branch begins at 58th St.

Seems to me the Lake St Elevated had a connection to the C&NW on the West Side many years ago.

All new trains arrive by truck, and everything else is quite small and could be trucked in and out as well, including snow jet blowers & sweepers, a telescoping crane, and track maintenance machines.  The CTA also has flat cars, differential dump gondolas, and lower profile ballast hoppers in work trains powered currently by 2000-series cars that were retired from revenue service.

Unless you mean scrap track materials, why would CTA want to haul scrap metal or go to the trouble?  Actually, they use flat cars for the former and then transfer to truck if they can't get a truck along the tracks, for instance an expressway shoulder.  Railroads don't want to be bothered with such low volume business either.

Not sure how recent the images from Google Earth are, but it appears that there is in fact still a connection at the green line east branch -- although the track looks like it's not been used for quite some time, e.g. trailer chassis parked on part of it, dirt-covered on the rest, it once it's off CTA property.  Check out 6592 S. Calumet Ave...the track just west of the corrugated metal-roofed shop building.  (Don't cha love virtual railfanning?! )

Meanwhile, using the same (admittedly not foolproof) method, I did not notice a connection between the Lake St. green line and the UP-W.

Finally, as noted by others, the connection between the MILW and the red line at Wilson was severed many years ago...but the bridgework had remained in place from the Wilson station down to Montrose Ave. (check out from 1060 W. Montrose going north).  Sad to report that they've recently torn down most of what remained -- appears that the Harry S. Truman college is expanding.  

"63rd Lower Yard" is on what used to be called the "Jackson Park Branch" of the CTA.  In today's parlance its the "East 63rd Branch" of the Green Line.  The Lower Yard is on the south side of 63rd to the west of Calumet Avenue.  There's no connection between the Green Line and the C&NW (UP) along Lake Street.  The connection that came off the "L" structure to the east of the Pulaski/Lake station, went down to grade level to provide access to the old Springfield Shops (replaced by the shop at Harlem/Lake in the 1960s).  The lead track at Springfield looped around the back of the surface divsion storage yard and went across Lake Street into the West Shops, a connection that was made after CTA had control of both the rapid transit and surface divisions.  Hope this helps! Art

The former connections to the Milwaukee Road near Wilson Avenue and to C&NW at Skokie shops are very definitely gone, as both of the rail lines to which CTA connected at these locations have been abandoned.  I'm sure most of the readers of the forum already know this but, if not, the CTA Red Line on the earth embankment from north of Wilson to Evanston was once a continuation of the Milwaukee Road line (although, when the MILW was operating the linein MILW days, it was at ground level).

I think there may be a connection at Oak Park between the UPGeneva Subdivision (the Metra/UP West Line) and the CTA Green Line shop.  At least there's a spur that appears to run into the shop area.  I don't know if it's been used in recent years.  I suspect not.

Just in case anyone is interested, there is a connection at the Lindenwald Shop complex of PATCO to the NJT Atlantic City line also used by CSX freight trains.  And at Ridge-8th there is a connection between PATCO and SEPTA's Ridge-8th branch of the standard gauge Broad Street Subway.

The suburban trolley routes 101 and 102 are tied to the Market Street rapid transit line sharing their shop in Upper Darby.   But I don't think there is any connection between this wide-gauge network and the adjacent city streetcar system, even though Market Street Rapid and subway-surface are adjacent in part of the Market Street subway, the rapid transit being the inner two of four tracks.

I think right now the Norristown high speed line, 100, lacks a connection to anything.  At one time it was of course connected to the large Lehigh Valley Transit interuruban system and to a Pennsylvania Railroad frieght branch.   If ther has been any change in these situations, please let us know.