Orland Park Metra – 153rd Street

I had to take the Metra this way for almost a year. Ouch. It is a long ride from here to downtown, no express trains and lots of freight train delays. And when the schedule says something like 8:00am departure, it means the doors are already sealed at 8:00am and the train is taking off.
Also,
The ticket agent has very limited hours.
There is not a lot of room inside which is critical in winter.
The parking boxes did not always work accurately and I had to argue my way thru more than one parking ticket because of this.
It can feel isolated here in winter after the evening rush hour trains.
People will in fact stampede you to get their preferred seat.

Welcome to amateur night at the Orland Park METRA station. I went there Thursday to purchase a ticket… got there at 1:30 pm and found the ticket station locked. No sign on the door of hours, so I called on my smart phone… found the hours to be 4:30 am to 12:15 pm Monday through Friday. So in short, my bad.
Returned on Friday at 8:45 am and found the ticket station locked. Still no sign on the door about hours, but I had covered that last time. Called METRA passenger services in downtown Chicago to ask what was up. A very nice person answered and said she’d check. Long and short is that the Orland Park agent was not going to be in all day Friday and the passenger service peeps downtown didn’t know about it either. Wonderful service out here in Orland Park.
This is the only station in Orland Park that sells tickets — and yes I know I can buy a ticket on the train — but then what do we need this absentee agent for in the first place. I understand emergencies crop up sometimes — but put a sign on the door that says there will not be an agent here today or get a substitute agent to operate the station. Why is customer service so hard for some corporations to learn?
As for a Metra station itself, this one at 153^rd Street is clean and spacious. Two warming houses — one at each end of the platform — serve nicely when weather is bad. The main station house in the middle is where the agent sometimes shows up. Since I never did get in, it looks clean enough when viewed from the outside looking through the windows.
Couple ideas:
1.) Put a sign of hours on the door
2.) Include a telephone number for the Orland Park station
3.) Include a telephone number for METRA passenger services downtown
4.) When an agent is called away and there is no substitute agent, put a sign on the door that tells patrons when an agent will be back
Last thoughts:
1.) The Orland Park agent gets zero stars
2.) The passenger services person downtown gets five stars

Metra stations host people that are regular riders. The station on 153^rd Street sees many regulars, especially in the morning. Many ride to Chicago for work, year round. In the winter months, the two small warming shelters keep many warm. They’re clean shelters with room for plenty. There is a ticketing station too, but it’s only open in the morning. The station is clean, effective, and better than most. Still, it’s just a waiting area in general.