Metra Southwest Service expected to resume Thursday after freight train derails near Chicago Ridge

Metra officials expect Southwest Service Line to resume Thursday morning after freight train derailment near southwest suburban Chicago Ridge.

Reports of the incident first came around 4:45 a.m. Wednesday and several inbound and outbound trains missed their scheduled departures due to the accident, according to Martha Hill, a spokesperson for Metra.

The freight train, a CSX, is over 9,000 feet long and weighs over 8,300 tons derailed between Ridgeland Avenue and Central Avenue, according to Chicago Ridge police and Hill.

There were no injuries and no hazardous materials, police said. After closures earlier Wednesday, the area was reduced to only local traffic later in the afternoon.

Metra officials said they expect the line to reopen Thursday morning and urged riders to check the agency’s website for updates.

“This is gonna take some time,” Hill said about restoring service to the line. “It’s gonna take a lot of hours and manpower to clean this up.”

No injuries were reported in the derailment.