Union Station is a key transportation asset and economic driver for the Chicago region. It is the third-busiest railroad terminal in the United States, serving over 300 trains per weekday carrying about 120,000 arriving and departing passengers – a level of passenger traffic that would rank it among the fifteen busiest airports in the U.S. Most travelers at Union Station take Metra commuter trains, and the station is also the hub of Amtrak’s network of regional trains serving the Midwest as well as most of the nation’s overnight trains, which connect to the Atlantic, Gulf, and Pacific coasts. CDOT, in partnership with Amtrak (the station’s owner), Metra (the station’s primary tenant), and other stakeholder organizations has prepared and is now implementing a Union Station Master Plan that includes both transportation-related capacity improvements and transit-oriented development surrounding the station. This walkshop will include an introduction to both the Master Plan and the Master Development effort, as well as a behind-the-scenes tour of Union Station highlighting current station operations and improvements that have been completed, are currently underway, and are planned for the future. We will explore the station’s passenger spaces, connecting facilities including the Loop Link BRT and Union Station Transit Center bus terminal, and associated transit-oriented redevelopment spaces and sites.
Modes: Walking, Bus
This Walkshop is supported by Arup.