Metra Operation North Pole 2025! 12-20-2025

In this special video, I was with That Train Guy Mason and Metra F40PH Railfanner where we both chased and filmed the Operation North Pole Holiday train!

After five years the Operation North Pole train returned. The train is wrapped and themed after the Nutcracker with the consist being Metra F40PH-3 102 Named after the Village of Mokena and 6 bi level passenger cars. This year the whole train was lit up with lights. The train was decorated inside with characters form Mickey Mouse, The Avengers, The Grinch, the Nutcracker and more. The train began operating on December 8th running the Union Pacific Northwest Line first.

Operation North Pole is a heartwarming charity event that gives kids facing serious or life threatening illnesses a train ride to the North Pole for an afternoon of fun with dancing, music, food, candy, games, presents, and meeting Santa and Mrs Claus. It gives these children a Christmas event they will always remember. Since 2011, Metra has been running special decorated trains each year on the Union Pacific Northwest Line for this event.

This video features other trains so for anyone wanting to only see the ONP train here’s the timestamps below!

Clip 1 6:08 - Here the ONP train is pushing into the Des Plaines station for photos, it deadheaded from the Crystal Lake coach yard following train 704.

Clip 2 7:35 - The ONP train leaves the station 10 minutes later to stay at the curve for photos by the River Road crossing.

Clip 3 8:54 - The train is at the River Road crossing for photos before going back to the curve.

Clip 4 17:24 - The train arrives back at the station to to pick up families while playing jingle bells.

Clip 5 19:04 - The train departs with families on board. The train would make a 30 minute stop at Pingree Road where firefighters would spend time with the kids and hand out gift bags. Also local schoolchildren would be singing Christmas carols on the platform and hand out gifts.

Clip 6 20:52 - The train is seen passing Cumberland station on its way to the North Pole.

Clip 7 22:53 - After dropping off the families, the train would deadhead the yard where it would stay for the rest of the day. The families would be escorted to the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont for the afternoon.

After the ONP train cleared Mount Prospect we both decided to film at the control point Norma on the UP Milwaukee Subdivision where we caught only one CPKC manifest.

There channels:
‪@MetraTitanicWTC‬
‪@TTGM1‬

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