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Uptown Station

Coordinates: 40°30′31″N 88°59′03″W / 40.50861°N 88.98417°W / 40.50861; -88.98417
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Uptown Station
Bloomington–Normal, IL
General information
Location11 Uptown Circle
Normal, Illinois
United States
Coordinates40°30′31″N 88°59′03″W / 40.50861°N 88.98417°W / 40.50861; -88.98417
Owned byTown of Normal
Line(s)UP Joliet Subdivision
Platforms2 side platforms
Tracks2
Connections
Construction
Parking380 spaces
AccessibleYes
ArchitectRatio Architects
Architectural styleFour-story red brick structure with limestone lintels and doorways
Other information
Station codeAmtrak: BNL
History
Opened1990
Rebuilt2012
Passengers
FY 2023203,842[1] (Amtrak)
Services
Preceding station Amtrak Following station
Lincoln
toward St. Louis
Lincoln Service Pontiac
toward Chicago
Lincoln Texas Eagle
Former services
Preceding station Amtrak Following station
Lincoln
toward Laredo or Houston
Inter-American Pontiac
toward Chicago
Lincoln Loop
Preceding station Alton Railroad Following station
Bloomington
toward St. Louis
Main Line Towanda
toward Chicago
Preceding station Illinois Central Railroad Following station
Panola
toward Freeport
Freeport – Centralia Colonial
toward Centralia
Location
Map

Uptown Station is an intermodal transportation center[2] in Normal, Illinois, United States. It is served by Amtrak, 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 and the Texas Eagle. This was also a stop for the Ann Rutledge until April 2007. Amtrak Thruway motorcoach routes serve the station via Davenport, Galesburg, Peoria, Champaign-Urbana, and Indianapolis.

In 2022, 178,018 train passengers boarded or alighted from Amtrak trains at Uptown Station, making it the second busiest Amtrak station in Illinois behind Chicago[3] This is primarily due to the large number of passengers traveling to and from Chicago and St. Louis. In 2019 Uptown station was the 44th busiest Amtrak station in the United States with 229,894 passengers.[4]

Former facilities

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Union Depot

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The original station serving Bloomington-Normal was Bloomington Union Depot.[5] 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 tracks.[5][6] 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.[5] The station was closed on June 10, 1990 to be replaced by a much smaller facility in Normal.[5][6] Seven years later, on October 31, 1997, a then-partially demolished Union Station was destroyed by fire.[5][6]

1990 Amtrak facility

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The original Normal station was built to the specifications of the Amtrak Standard Stations Program.[5][7] Located near the campus of Illinois State University, this station lasted until the new facility opened in 2012.[5]

New facility

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Amtrak Bloomington–Normal station platform

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.[2][5] The facility opened on June 14, 2012.[8] Construction, which cost between $43 and $47 million, was funded by a combination of federal, state and local grants.[9][10]

The new 68,000-square-foot (6,300 m2) transportation center was designed by Ratio Architects of Champaign; it is composed primarily of red brick with limestone trim.[11] 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.[11]

Connections

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Bus transportation providers are: [12]

References

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  1. ^ "Amtrak Fact Sheet, Fiscal Year 2023: State of Illinois" (PDF). Amtrak. March 2024. Retrieved June 25, 2024.
  2. ^ a b "Uptown Station". Town of Normal. Archived from the original on 2016-03-06. Uptown Station serves as host to numerous transportation providers in addition to housing the Town of Normal municipal offices and Town Council chambers
  3. ^ "Amtrak Fact Sheet - Fiscal Year 2022 State of Illinois" (PDF). www.amtrak.com.
  4. ^ "State Fact Sheets | Amtrak".
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h Kemp, Bill (4 October 2015). "Union Depot, grand gateway to wider world". The Pantagraph. Retrieved 27 July 2019.
  6. ^ a b c Kemp, Bill (3 February 2016). "'Union' Depot, December 1979 Bloomington's West Side". McLean County Museum of History. Retrieved 27 July 2019.
  7. ^ Charlie, Monte Verde (2 December 2015). "Farewell to an American Classic". Cult of Americana. Retrieved 27 July 2019.
  8. ^ "Bloomington-Normal, IL (BNL)". Great American Stations.
  9. ^ Ford, Mary Ann (August 7, 2010). "Officials: Transportation Hub Will Help Economy". The Pantagraph. Bloomington. Retrieved August 10, 2010.
  10. ^ "Aug 13, 2010: Hotline #667". NARP. August 13, 2010. Archived from the original on July 16, 2011. Retrieved August 15, 2010.
  11. ^ a b Great American Stations. Retrieved March 27, 2013.
  12. ^ "Transportation Providers". Town of Normal. Archived from the original on 2016-01-19.
  13. ^ "Burlington Illinois Locations". Burlington Trailways. 23 March 2017. Bloomington/Normal, 11 Uptown Circle, Normal, IL
  14. ^ "Peoria Charter". peoriacharter.com. Archived from the original on 2015-05-18. Retrieved 2015-05-17.
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Media related to Uptown Station at Wikimedia Commons