Amtrak is calling on the public to contribute their ideas for the improvement of Chicago Union Station.
As part of the Government of Illinois’ Chicago Hub Improvement Program, Amtrak is reimagining the Concourse at Chicago Union Station. This will include improvements to the boarding process, modernised amenities, and new services.
To commence the design phase of this project, Amtrak has posted a survey, which will remain open to the public until the end of January.
This project will mark the first major enhancement at track level and above since 1991 in a station that serves tens of thousands of Amtrak and Metra passengers each day.
Since the current concourse was designed 32 years ago, Amtrak’s passenger count in Chicago has risen from 2.3 million to 3.3 million. Meanwhile, annual Metra ridership at Chicago Union Station has grown from 26.6 million to 32.6 million passengers.
“The station first opened in 1925 and Amtrak will involve our partners and the general public to develop a preferred design that will take us into the next hundred years. The work at Chicago Union Station, our most critical linchpin for travel across the national network, will be performed using federal capital funds along with generous contributions from our partners for both the design and construction elements of the project.”
The design team for the improvement programme is led by Chicago-based Epstein, in partnership with FXCollaborative.
“We are proud to partner with Amtrak on this ambitious and challenging project. The importance of Chicago Union Station as part of the regional and local transportation network cannot be overstated.”
