Highliner: 1258 DC motor (GE) Highliner II: 3-phase 4 pole AC induction motor[1]
Power output
Highliner: 150 hp (110 kW) continuous, 160 hp (120 kW) maximum 1-hr rating per motor (4 per car) Highliner II: 200 hp (150 kW) per motor (4 per car)[1]
In 1926, the Illinois Central's commuter rail lines were electrified, and began operating as the "IC Electric". For almost 40 years, the IC Electric continued to operate the original fleet of heavyweight cars, until the railroad decided that a more modern railcar was needed to improve commuter operations.[citation needed] The Chicago South Suburban Mass Transit District was formed in 1967 in order to qualify for federal funding to purchase new equipment for the route. The original 130 car Highliner fleet had a cost of approximately $40 million; $26.6 million was funded by a federal grant, with the remainder coming from the Illinois Central.[2] The railcars operated on electric catenary and were more efficient than their heavyweight predecessors. A typical Highliner was able to seat 156 passengers and run faster than the heavyweight fleet.
In 1976, the newly formed Regional Transportation Authority began to fund the IC Electric commuter service. In 1983, the RTA created Metra, Chicago's commuter rail service, and in 1987, Metra purchased the IC Electric line, forming the Metra Electric Line.
An additional batch of 36 Highliners was built from 1978 to 1979 by the Bombardier company. Starting in 2005, the aged original fleet, which was increasingly prone to breakage and experiencing soaring maintenance costs, began to be phased out. They were replaced by new Highliners built by Nippon Sharyo of Japan, the same company that is currently in charge of production of Metra's fleet of gallery cars. The last revenue run of the original Highliner cars was on February 12, 2016. Metra confirmed in a Facebook post that twenty-four cars are being sent to museums around the Midwestern United States, including the Illinois Railway Museum, while the other cars were sent to Mendota, Illinois to be scrapped.[3]
Highliner II
The Nippon Sharyo Highliners are similar in appearance to the gallery cars used on Metra's diesel lines. The South Shore Line, which operates on the Metra Electric from Millennium Station to Kensington/115th Street before diverging east to Indiana, also purchased and operates the Highliner II to supplement its fleet of EMUs.[4]
Metra has begun testing 90mph operations on part of the Metra Electric District and has committed to getting the entire network to 79mph. Signaling and catenary work has begun. The previous 65mph limit was a result of 1926 Pullman stock braking algorithms which were replaced by Highliner I and no longer relevant.[5]