Uptown Station is an intermodal transportation center
in
Normal, Illinois
Normal is a town in McLean County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2020 census, the town's population was 52,736. Normal is the smaller of two principal municipalities of the Bloomington–Normal metropolitan area, and Illinois' seventh most ...
,
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
. It is served by
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
, the national railroad passenger system, and is the major intercity rail station in north-central Illinois. It appears on Amtrak timetables as
Bloomington–Normal.
Amtrak runs two routes through the station–the ''
Lincoln Service
The ''Lincoln Service'' is a higher-speed rail service operated by Amtrak that runs between Chicago, Illinois and St. Louis, Missouri. The train is a part of the ''Illinois Service'' and is partially funded by the Illinois Department of Transp ...
'' and the ''
Texas Eagle
The ''Texas Eagle'' is a daily passenger train route operated by Amtrak between Chicago and San Antonio in the central and western United States. Prior to 1988, the train was known as the ''Eagle''.
Trains #21 (southbound) and 22 (northbound) ...
''. This was also a stop for the ''
Ann Rutledge
Ann Mayes Rutledge (January 7, 1813 – August 25, 1835) was allegedly Abraham Lincoln's first love.
Early life
Born near Henderson, Kentucky, Ann Mayes Rutledge was the third of 10 children born to Mary Ann Miller Rutledge and James Rutledge ...
'' until April 2007.
Amtrak Thruway
Amtrak Thruway is a system of through-ticketed transportation services to connect passengers with areas not served by Amtrak trains. In most cases these are dedicated motorcoach routes, but can also be non-dedicated intercity bus services, transi ...
motorcoach routes serve the station via
Davenport,
Galesburg,
Peoria,
Champaign/Urbana, and
Indianapolis
Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...
.
In 2014, 261,631 train passengers boarded or alighted from Amtrak trains at Uptown Station, making it the fourth busiest Amtrak station in the Midwest behind
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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,
Milwaukee
Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee is ...
, and
St. Louis
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
. This is primarily due to the large number of passengers traveling to and from Chicago and St. Louis.
Former facilities
Union Depot
The original station serving Bloomington-Normal was Bloomington Union Depot.
This station was located on Bloomington's west side, just south of West Washington Street and on the west side of the
Chicago & Alton Railroad
The Alton Railroad was the final name of a railroad linking Chicago to Alton, Illinois; St. Louis, Missouri; and Kansas City, Missouri. Its predecessor, the Chicago and Alton Railroad , was purchased by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in 1931 a ...
tracks.
It had been constructed in the mid-1880s, and survived well into the Amtrak era because Bloomington-Normal is located along the most direct route from Chicago to St. Louis.[ The station was closed on June 10, 1990 to be replaced by a much smaller facility in Normal.][ Seven years later, on October 31, 1997, a then-partially demolished Union Station was destroyed by fire.][
]
1990 Amtrak facility
The original Normal station was built to the specifications of the Amtrak Standard Stations Program
The Amtrak Standard Stations Program was an effort by Amtrak to create a standardized station design." The railroad launched the effort in 1978 to reduce costs, speed construction, and improve its corporate image.
Background
When Amtrak was fou ...
.[ Located near the campus of ]Illinois State University
Illinois State University (ISU) is a public university in Normal, Illinois. Founded in 1857 as Illinois State Normal University, it is the oldest public university in Illinois. The university emphasizes teaching and is recognized as one of th ...
, this station lasted until the new facility opened in 2012.[
]
New facility
On August 7, 2010, construction began on a new intermodal facility, located across the tracks from the 1990 facility. The new facility includes administrative offices and council chambers for the town in addition to serving Amtrak, city and long-distance buses.[ The facility opened on June 14, 2012. Construction, which cost between $43 and $47 million, was funded by a combination of federal, state and local grants.
The new transportation center was designed by Ratio Architects of Champaign; it is composed primarily of red brick with limestone trim.][Great American Stations](_blank)
Retrieved March 27, 2013. The building's prominent corner clock tower has become a landmark for the neighborhood. Numerous environmentally sustainable features are also included, such as a green roof partially planted in vegetation that will absorb rainwater and cool the building; the rest of the roof is covered in reflective materials to deflect sunlight.
Connections
Bus transportation providers are:
*Burlington Trailways
Burlington Trailways is an inter-city bus company based in West Burlington, Iowa.
History
Burlington Trailways was founded in 1929 as the Burlington Transportation Company, a subsidiary of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad. It started ...
between Indianapolis, IN and Burlington, IA
*Connect Transit
Connect Transit, formerly Bloomington-Normal Public Transit System until 2012, is the primary provider of mass transportation in McLean County, Illinois, Bloomington/Normal, IL. The system consists of 13 fixed routes, plus the Illinois State Univer ...
regular routes A, B, D, E, G, H, I, and Nite Ride and Redbird Express serving Illinois State University
Illinois State University (ISU) is a public university in Normal, Illinois. Founded in 1857 as Illinois State Normal University, it is the oldest public university in Illinois. The university emphasizes teaching and is recognized as one of th ...
.
*Peoria Charter: Peoria – O'Hare/Midway
References
External links
Bloomington-Normal, IL – Texas Eagle (Amtrak)
* ttp://www.normal.org/index.aspx?NID=695 Uptown Normal Webcam of Multimodal Station Construction (Normal.org)
{{Amtrak Illinois stations
Amtrak stations in Illinois
Buildings and structures in Bloomington–Normal
Transportation buildings and structures in McLean County, Illinois
Railway stations in the United States opened in 1990
1990 establishments in Illinois