| Jenner |
Jan 11, 2015 9:04 PM |
Quote:
Originally Posted by le_brew
(Post 6869356)
after looking over Chicago-Union-Station Master Plan Study have some observations: - when the concourse was upgraded in 1991, it did virtually nothing to improve much of anything
- the short- and medium-term solutions (shifting platforms, columns, moving stairs/escalators) are simply window dressing with no real increased station capacity (sightlines and natural light improvements make things more attractive, but do what in terms of capacity)
- Amtrak owns CUS facilities and are overly accommodating METRA riders (unclear of the relationship there), unless it's federally mandated that they do so
- mail platforms and tunnels considered for expanded passenger areas extend to congress and beyond; much too far south of CUS concourse (moving walkways, perhaps) passengers would then be directly adjacent/beneath vacant old post office bldg
- report states (repeatedly) that amtrak has no interest in the old PO due to complications, but both agencies need to re-consider the old PO since private development has fizzled
- METRA separating the south track operations (only) from CUS to north part of old PO would greatly relieve congestion and facilitate redevelopment of the (ground levels) of the old post office
- not mentioned in the report is that streetcar tunnel under the river which if re-furbished could serve as an alternate to the streets, to help distribute passengers into the loop.
as it is, CUS is an 800-pound gorilla fitting into a little black mini-skirt.
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Some responses:
1. It is hard to increase station capacity unless you are able to increase volume or divert passengers to other routes. Increasing volume vertically is hard since you can't stack the tracks at street level, or at the basement level since the baggage operations interfere with passenger movement. You can optionally increase volume by extending the station into the tracks, which reduces track lengths, but then you would need to somehow rearrange the tracks to make up for that missing length. For example, you could extend the southern part of the station by 60-100 feet to allow more pedestrian movement, allow for some bigger hallways, etc. That may not be a bad long term solution as you can rearrange the tracks, switches, platforms, and more. However, this would require more engineering studies to determine obstructions, like the old post office and the new post office. And, the cost would be large, but perhaps worth it.
The least cost option would be to divert passengers via the escalators to the new exits. The best option would be to connect to pedestrian tunnels to the loop.
2. Amtrak may not want the old post office based on the amount of space available. They don't want to own another building. I'm not sure who owns it currently (US Gov?), but they aren't ready to lease any space for any needs yet.
3. Most passengers need access to the financial areas of the city. Moving the CUS Metra South operations further south makes it further for people to walk to/from the train and work.
4. There's lots of things missing from making CUS more effective. For starters, the rest of the train lines aren't connected via transit in case anyone wanted to come in on an existing Metra line and then take Amtrak. b) There should be a short connector to the Clinton subway, but even that is missing. c)And, yes, connections to pedestrian tunnels are missing. d) Ogilvie isn't too far away, and there isn't a connector to there.
There isn't too much you can do with the situation. The basement is used for baggage, and you really can't move the tracks too much. |
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