flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

Arup chosen to lead renovations of Chicago’s Union Station

Transit Facilities

Arup chosen to lead renovations of Chicago’s Union Station

The third-busiest station in the country needs more space.


By Mike Chamernik, Associate Editor | July 13, 2016

Chicago's Union Station. Photo: Jazz Guy/Creative Commons.

The engineering and architectural firm Arup has been selected to lead the design work for renovations to Chicago’s historic Union Station.

The City of Chicago, railroad service company Amtrak, and a collection of Chicago transportation entities, including the commuter railroad service Metra, worked together on the decision.

According to the Chicago Tribune, Union Station handles more than 125,000 passengers each work day and is the third-busiest station in the country. It is one of four Metra hubs in Chicago, but it is the city's only Amtrak station. 

Arup is tasked with expanding concourses and entrances, widening platforms and passageways, and improving ventilation, according to Crain's Chicago.

The idea is to keep the history in tact. Union Station’s features include Bedford limestone Beaux-Arts facades, Corinthian columns, marble floors and staircases, terracotta walls, and brass lamps. The 110-foot high Great Hall, with its barrel-vaulted skylights above, hosts elegant events like receptions and weddings.

Arup led has designed rail station projects in places like New York City, New Delhi, and Florence, Italy.

The first phase of the Union Station project is expected to take 18 months. Crain’s Chicago reports that the Union Station renovations could possibly be funded by $1 billion in low-interest federal loans, known as Railroad Rehabilitation and Infrastructure Financing.

 

Great Hall in Union Station. Photo: Don Harder/Creative Commons. Click to enlarge.

Related Stories

| Jun 1, 2012

New BD+C University Course on Insulated Metal Panels available

By completing this course, you earn 1.0 HSW/SD AIA Learning Units.

| May 29, 2012

Reconstruction Awards Entry Information

Download a PDF of the Entry Information at the bottom of this page.

| May 24, 2012

2012 Reconstruction Awards Entry Form

Download a PDF of the Entry Form at the bottom of this page.

| Mar 29, 2012

U.K.’s Manchester Airport tower constructed in nine days

Time-lapse video shows construction workers on the jobsite for 222 continuous hours.

| Feb 15, 2012

Skanska secures $87M contract for subway project

The construction value of the project is $261.9 M. Skanska will include its full share, $87 M, in the bookings for Skanska USA Civil for the first quarter 2012.

| Dec 21, 2011

Hoboken Terminal restoration complete

Restoration of ferry slips, expanded service to benefit commuters.

| Dec 19, 2011

Davis Construction breaks ground on new NIAID property

The new offices will total 490,998 square feet in a 10-story building with two wings of 25,000 square feet each. 

| Dec 2, 2011

What are you waiting for? BD+C's 2012 40 Under 40 nominations are due Friday, Jan. 20

Nominate a colleague, peer, or even yourself. Applications available here.

| Nov 10, 2011

Suffolk Construction awarded MBTA transit facility and streetscape project

The 21,000-sf project will feature construction of a cable-stayed pedestrian bridge over Ocean Avenue, an elevated plaza deck above Wonderland MBTA Station, a central plaza, and an at-grade pedestrian crossing over Revere Beach Boulevard

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category

Adaptive Reuse

Detroit’s Michigan Central Station, centerpiece of innovation hub, opens

The recently opened Michigan Central Station in Detroit is the centerpiece of a 30-acre technology and cultural hub that will include development of urban transportation solutions. The six-year adaptive reuse project of the 640,000 sf historic station, created by the same architect as New York’s Grand Central Station, is the latest sign of a reinvigorating Detroit.



Transit Facilities

Top 25 Transit Facility Construction Firms for 2023

The Walsh Group, Clark Group, Hensel Phelps, Skanska USA, and Hill International top BD+C's ranking of the nation's largest transit facility general contractors and construction management (CM) firms for 2023, as reported in the 2023 Giants 400 Report. Note: This ranking includes construction revenue for work related to bus terminals, rail terminals, and transit stations.


Transit Facilities

Top 40 Transit Facility Engineering Firms for 2023

AECOM, Jacobs, EXP, WSP, and Arup head BD+C's ranking of the nation's largest transit facility engineering and engineering/architecture (EA) firms for 2023, as reported in the 2023 Giants 400 Report. Note: This ranking includes design revenue for work related to bus terminals, rail terminals, and transit stations.

halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021