Chicago Union Station

Chicago Union Station
Amtrak intercity and Metra commuter rail terminal
General information
Location	225 South Canal Street, Chicago, Illinois
Owned by	Amtrak
Operated by	Amtrak, Metra
Line(s)	C&M Subdivision Chicago Subdivision
Platforms	30 island platforms
Tracks	24 (14 South Concourse, 10 North Concourse)[1]
Connections	Chicago "L": Clinton (Blue Line) Quincy (The Loop) CTA Buses, Amtrak Thruway, Pace, Megabus, Greyhound
Construction
Parking	Paid
Bicycle facilities	3 Divvy bikeshare stations
Accessible	Yes
Other information
Station code	Amtrak: CHI
IATA code	ZUN
Fare zone	1 (Metra)
Website	chicagounionstation.com
History
Opened	May 16, 1925; 98 years ago (1925-05-16)
Passengers
FY 2022	2,359,084[2] (Amtrak)
Services Preceding station Amtrak Following station Terminus Blue Water New Buffalo toward Port Huron Capitol Limited South Bend toward Washington, D.C. Cardinal Dyer toward New York Lake Shore Limited South Bend toward New York or Boston South Pere Marquette St. Joseph toward Grand Rapids Wolverine Hammond–Whiting toward Pontiac Naperville toward Emeryville California Zephyr Terminus Homewood toward New Orleans City of New Orleans Glenview toward Seattle or Portland Empire Builder Glenview toward Milwaukee Hiawatha Service Homewood toward Carbondale Illini and Saluki La Grange Road toward Quincy Illinois Zephyr and Carl Sandburg Summit toward St. Louis Lincoln Service Naperville toward Los Angeles Southwest Chief Joliet toward Los Angeles or San Antonio Texas Eagle Preceding station Metra Following station Halsted Street Weekday limited toward Aurora BNSF Terminus Summit toward Joliet Heritage Corridor Weekday rush hours Western Avenue toward Fox Lake Milwaukee District North Western Avenue toward Big Timber Road Milwaukee District West Western Avenue toward Antioch North Central Service Weekdays Wrightwood toward Manhattan SouthWest Service Weekdays
Former services Preceding station Amtrak Following station Terminus Hoosier State Discontinued in 2019 Dyer toward Indianapolis Kentucky Cardinal Discontinued in 2003 Dyer toward Louisville Pennsylvanian 1998–2003 Hammond–Whiting toward Philadelphia Three Rivers 1995–2005 Hammond–Whiting toward New York International Hammond–Whiting 1982–2001 toward Toronto Niles 2001–2004 toward Toronto Lake Cities 1980–2004 Hammond–Whiting toward Pontiac Twilight Limited 1976–2004 Hammond–Whiting toward Pontiac Broadway Limited Discontinued in 1995 Hammond–Whiting toward New York Lake Shore South Bend toward New York (Grand Central) Calumet Discontinued in 1991 Hammond–Whiting toward Valparaiso Mountaineer 1975–1977 Peru toward Norfolk James Whitcomb Riley 1974–1977 Peru toward Washington, D.C. James Whitcomb Riley and George Washington 1972–1974 Homewood toward Washington, D.C. or Newport News Floridian Logansport 1971–1975 toward St. Petersburg or Miami Lafayette 1975–1979 toward St. Petersburg or Miami Elmhurst 1974-1981 toward Dubuque Black Hawk 1974–1981 Terminus Glenview 2000-2001 toward Janesville Lake Country Limited Joliet (Union Station) toward Dallas or Houston Lone Star Discontinued in 1979 Joliet (Union Station) toward Laredo or Houston Inter-American Discontinued in 1981 Naperville toward Los Angeles Desert Wind Discontinued in 1997 Naperville toward Seattle Pioneer Discontinued in 1997 Glenview toward Seattle North Coast Hiawatha Discontinued in 1979 Preceding station Burlington Route Following station La Grange toward Denver Main Line Terminus La Grange toward Minneapolis Minneapolis – Chicago Halsted Street toward Aurora Suburban Service Preceding station Milwaukee Road Following station Western Avenue towards Seattle or Tacoma Main Line Terminus Western Avenue towards Omaha Omaha – Chicago Western Avenue towards Milwaukee Chicago – Milwaukee Western Avenue towards Walworth Suburban Service North Line Western Avenue towards Elgin Suburban Service West Line Fullerton Avenue towards Llewellyn Park Chicago – Evanston Preceding station Pennsylvania Railroad Following station Terminus Main Line Englewood toward New York or Exchange Place Valparaiso Local Garfield Boulevard toward Valparaiso Chicago – Columbus Englewood toward Columbus Chicago – Cincinnati Englewood toward Cincinnati Chicago – Louisville Englewood toward Louisville Preceding station Alton Railroad Following station Halsted Street toward St. Louis Main Line Terminus Preceding station Norfolk and Western Railway Following station 47th Street toward Orland Park Orland Park Cannonball Terminus
Future services Preceding station Amtrak Following station Glenview toward St. Paul TCMC Terminus La Grange Road toward Moline Quad Cities Proposed
Interactive map highlighting Chicago Union Station
Coordinates	41°52′43″N 87°38′25″W / 41.87861°N 87.64028°W / 41.87861; -87.64028
Architect	D. H. Burnham & Company and successors
Architectural style(s)	Beaux-Arts
Chicago Landmark
Designated	May 1, 2002
Track layout Legend MILW Chicago & Evanston RR to Llewellyn Park Empire Builder to Portland/Seattle Hiawatha Service to Milwaukee MD-N to Fox Lake NCS to Antioch MD-W to Big Timber Road Green Pink Blue North Concourse MD-N NCS MD-W end Empire Builder & Hiawatha Service end South Concourse BNSF HC SWS end [note 1] [note 2] end Blue B&OCT Bridge (closed) St. Charles Air Line Bridge (temporarily closed) BNSF west to Aurora [note 2] HC to Joliet SWS to Manhattan [note 1] Key Platforms for passenger use Platform for mail use ^ a b Blue Water, Capitol Limited, Lake Shore Limited, Pere Marquette, Wolverine, Cardinal, City of New Orleans, Illini/Saluki, Lincoln Service, Texas Eagle ^ a b California Zephyr, Illinois Zephyr/Carl Sandburg, Southwest Chief

Chicago Union Station is an intercity and commuter rail terminal located in the West Loop neighborhood of the Near West Side of Chicago. Amtrak's flagship station in the Midwest, Union Station is the terminus of eight national long-distance routes and seven regional corridor routes. Six Metra commuter lines also terminate here.

Union Station is just west of the Chicago River between West Adams Street and West Jackson Boulevard, adjacent to the Chicago Loop. Including approach and storage tracks, it covers about nine and a half city blocks (mostly underground, beneath streets and skyscrapers, some built with the earliest usage of railway air rights).

The present station opened in 1925, replacing an earlier union station on this site built in 1881. The station is the fourth-busiest rail station in the United States, after Pennsylvania Station, Grand Central Terminal, and Jamaica station in New York City,^[3] and the busiest outside of the Northeast Corridor. It handles about 140,000 passengers on an average weekday (including 10,000 Amtrak passengers).^[4] It has Bedford limestone Beaux-Arts facades, and an interior with massive Corinthian columns, marble floors, and a Great Hall, highlighted by brass lamps.^[5]

The station connects to multiple transit authorities including the Chicago Transit Authority bus and Chicago L lines, Metra, Pace, Greyhound, and more either within the station or within walking distance.

Name[edit]

Chicago Union Station is named a union station, like many train stations across the United States that were shared by several railroad companies.^[6] The station is the third union station to occupy the site between West Adams Street and West Jackson Boulevard. The station is known by the acronym CUS, as well as by its Amtrak station code CHI.

Location[edit]

Chicago Union Station is situated in the West Loop Gate neighborhood of the Near West Side of Chicago, just west of Chicago's Loop. The station's underground concourse and train sheds abut the Chicago River; passageways extend west beneath Canal Street to the main station building, one block over.^[7]

Services[edit]

Amtrak[edit]

Metra[edit]

Connections[edit]

Local rail service[edit]

Unlike many major American intercity and commuter rail hubs, Union Station does not have any direct connection to local rapid transit service. However, two Chicago "L" stations are within walking distance of Union Station.

• Clinton (two blocks south of the station): Blue
• Quincy (three blocks east of the station, on The Loop): Brown, Orange, Pink, and Purple

Metra's other three downtown terminals – the Ogilvie Transportation Center, LaSalle Street Station and Millennium Station – are all within walking distance of Union Station. Passengers connecting from Ogilvie can access Union Station's north platforms on the opposite side of Madison Street.

Bus service[edit]

Numerous CTA bus routes stop directly at Union Station:^[8]

• Union Station Transit Center: 1, 28, 121, 124, 128, 151, 156
• West side of Clinton, north side of block: 125, 130, 192
• West side of Clinton, south side of block: 7, 60, 157
• Southwest corner of Clinton/Jackson: 126, 754, 755 (Pace)

Union Station Transit Center is located adjacent to Union Station's parking garage.^[9] The bus station opened in 2016, on land formerly used for a surface parking lot.^[10] It features an elevator and stairway to the Amtrak underground pedestrian tunnel, allowing commuters to pass between Union Station and the bus staging area without crossing at street level.

Union Station has a counter operated by the Greyhound intercity bus company. Tickets are available for purchase, and some Greyhound and Megabus buses pick up passengers on South Canal Street, on the east side of the station building. The full-service Greyhound station is four blocks southwest of Union Station.^[11]

Historical services[edit]

Union Station was served by lines in all directions even before Penn Central and Amtrak consolidated the downtown terminals. The station served as a terminal for the following railroads:

• Chicago and Alton Railroad – only a tenant, later part of the Gulf, Mobile and Ohio Railroad
• Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad (Burlington Route)
• Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad (Milwaukee Road) – The station housed its corporate offices from 1924 to 1986
• Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne and Chicago Railway (PRR)
• Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad (Panhandle) (moved to use the PFW&C approach after April 23, 1917)
• Penn Central Transportation Company (former services of the New York Central Railroad and Michigan Central Railroad) (moved from LaSalle Street Station October 27, 1968)
• Amtrak (began May 1, 1971, moved from Dearborn Station May 2, 1971 and Central Station March 6, 1972 (Floridian moved January 23, 1972); Amtrak's Calumet and Indiana Connection commuter trains also ran into Union Station)

Some of these trains and their names have survived to present Amtrak services, such as the Empire Builder, the California Zephyr, and the Hiawatha.

The name Ann Rutledge was used by Amtrak as a Chicago-St. Louis-Kansas City route until a name and service consolidation in 2009. There is also a Lincoln Service that operates in Illinois.

Interior[edit]

Station building[edit]

Located west of Canal Street, Union Station's station building occupies an entire city block. At its center is the Great Hall, the main waiting room. Arrayed around the Great Hall are numerous smaller spaces containing restaurants and services, and a wide passageway leading to the concourse. Above the main floor are several floors of office space, currently used by Amtrak. Original plans called for many more floors of offices, forming a skyscraper above the Great Hall. This was never completed, although the plan has been revived in recent years.

The Burlington Room is an event space at the northwest of the Great Hall. The room features large columns, chandeliers, four French block murals of landscape scenery, and an original mirror. The space, initially a women's lounge, was restored in November 2016, after years of damage and neglect. For event uses, the space has color-changing lights and an audiovisual system.^[12]

The headhouse includes a space formerly used as a Fred Harvey restaurant. After a large fire in 1980, the space was damaged, windows on Clinton Street were destroyed, and the space was left vacant since then. In 2018, Amtrak announced plans to redevelop the space into a multi-level food hall, using funds from the sale of its parking garage. A new entrance and canopy would be installed on Clinton Street, and new windows would replace the bricked-up windows. The food hall was planned to open in the summer of 2020.^[13]

The headhouse also includes a Metropolitan Lounge, one of seven Amtrak offers in its stations. The lounge operates like an airport lounge, accessible to business- and first-class passengers, as well as other high-price ticketed passengers. The lounge reopened in June 2016, moving from the concourse to the headhouse. It has two stories and 13,500 square feet (1,250 m²), double the space of the previous lounge. It features different seating areas intended for businesspeople, families and children, and people using phones or tablets. The space has bathrooms with showers, and an elevator.^[14][15]

Platforms and tracks[edit]

Union Station is laid out with a double stub-end configuration, with 10 tracks coming into the station from the north and 14 from the south. Unlike most of Amtrak's major stations, every train calling at Union Station either originates or terminates there; all passengers traveling through Chicago must change trains to reach their final destination. There are two through tracks to allow out-of-service equipment moves between the north and south side, including one with a platform to allow extra long trains to board. Between the north and south sides of the station is a passenger concourse. Passengers can walk through the concourse to get from any platform to any other without stairs or elevators.^[16] Odd-numbered platforms (1–19) are on the north half of the station, and even-numbered platforms (2–30) on the south half. The north tracks are used by Amtrak for the Hiawatha Service and the Empire Builder, and by Metra for the Milwaukee District West, Milwaukee District North, and North Central Service routes. The south tracks are used for all other Amtrak services, as well as by Metra for the BNSF, Heritage Corridor and SouthWest Services. Two station management structures (known as glasshouses), one on each side of the terminal, monitor train-to-track assignments and the flow of traffic in and out of the station. Actual oversight and control of switching and signalling is accomplished by two "train director" positions, one for each side of the station, located in the Amtrak control center in the station's headhouse.

Numerous entrances provide access to Union Station's underground platform level. The main entrance is on Canal Street opposite the headhouse, but passengers can also reach the platforms directly from the headhouse via an underground passageway. Two secondary entrances are located in Riverside Plaza near the Jackson Boulevard and Adams Street bridges. On Madison Street, across the street, and one block east from Ogilvie Transportation Center, are a set of entrances to the north platforms.

Architecture[edit]

Union Station was designed by D. H. Burnham & Company (known for its lead architect Daniel Burnham, who died before construction began). The successor firm of Graham, Anderson, Probst and White completed the work. The terminal was among the first to anticipate automobile traffic; it was first designed in 1909, one year after the Model T entered production. It was designed with ticket offices, concourses, platforms, waiting and baggage rooms, and shops, all on a single level, meant to be easy to navigate. At opening, the terminal also housed a hospital, chapel, and jail cell.^[6]

The main building, a square Neoclassical structure, takes up one city block. Its architectural style contrasts with modern glass-faced buildings around it. The station has wide porticos and large colonnades on its exterior. The street-level entrances utilize Indiana limestone.^[6]

The station originally featured a large concourse along the river, made with marble, glass, and iron.^[6] Massive steel arches held up the roof, and several stairways led passengers down to the platforms.

Great Hall[edit]

At the building's center is the Great Hall, a 110-foot (34 m)-high atrium capped by a large barrel-vaulted skylight. The 24,000-square-foot (2,200 m²) room has connecting lobbies, staircases, and balconies. Enormous wooden benches are arranged in the room for travelers to wait for connections, and two specially-designed underground taxicab drives were built to protect travelers from the weather.^[17] The room's columns are of textured Roman travertine, with leafy golden Corinthian capitals. The ceilings and insets are coffered, with decorative rosettes.^[6]

Two statues by Henry Hering —Night and Day — look down on passengers, symbolizing the 24-hour operation of the railroads. The statue Night holds an owl, while Day holds a rooster.^[17]

Related structures[edit]

Power station[edit]

The Chicago Union Station Power House is a decommissioned coal-fire power plant that provided power to Union Station and its surrounding infrastructure.^[18][19][20] Located on the Chicago River, north of Roosevelt Road, it was designed in the Art Moderne style by Graham, Anderson, Probst and White in 1931.^[18][19]