Randolph Street Terminal
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The Randolph Street Terminal renamed "Millennium Station" after the 2006 completion of its rehab and location adjacent to Millennium Park (sometimes called the Randolph Street Station or the Randolph-South Water Street Station) is a major commuter rail terminal in downtown Chicago that serves the Metra Electric Line to University Park, Blue Island, and South Chicago; and the South Shore Line to Gary and South Bend, Indiana. The terminal was built by the Illinois Central Railroad and is now owned by the Northeast Illinois Regional Commuter Railroad Corporation, or Metra.
Because the tracks leading to the station go through Grant Park in an open cut, the Illinois Central was required by City Council to electrify its suburban services in 1926. As a result, all lines now terminating at Randolph Street use electric multiple units rather than Diesel push-pull trains like all of Metra's other lines. During peak periods, trains leave the terminal as frequently as twice a minute.
The station was torn apart from the mid-1980s until just recently - 2005 - initially because of construction on the adjacent street, but continued unrenovated for 20 years due to budget constrictions and, eventually, the planning and building of Millennium Park (a project that also took longer than expected to complete). Its steel girders covered with flame retardant material, badly painted plywood, unrelieved concrete floor, construction/utility lights, and cave-like environs which prevailed for two decades have now been transformed into a modern-looking rail station.
Since its renovation, the station has been renamed Millennium Station to increase its cachet among residents moving into the newly high-priced condos being created and converted in the immediate area.
| Preceding station | Metra / NICTD | Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Note: While Metra and NICTD share tracks, they do not honor each other's fares, and the South Shore line does not allow passengers to travel between two stops served by Metra Electric | ||||
| Terminus | Metra Electric Line | Van Buren Street | ||
| Terminus | South Shore Line | Van Buren Street | ||
| Major intercity railroad stations of Chicago | |
| Active terminals: | LaSalle - Ogilvie (North Western) - Randolph - Union (CUSCo) |
| Former terminals: | Central Station - Dearborn (C&WI) - Grand Central (B&OCT) Central Depot - Galena and Chicago Union - Nickel Plate Wells (C&NW) - Wells (CA&E) - Columbian Exposition |
| Other stations: | Englewood |
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