Denver Union Station is Closing Soon

The Denver Union Station building will be closing to the public on December 1. The Park Service was the last government agency to approve the remodel, so the project is moving forward. Amtrak will return to the building in early 2014 with the rest of the building opening that summer. The model trains will be back that summer too. There more information on the DUSPA website, although none of it is particularly new.

This may be why the downtown Denver Grand Illumination is so early this year. Or is it always the day after Thanksgiving?

I am going to miss the model trains.

Lincoln's Temporary Amtrak Station is now open, ribbon cutting on Thursday

Update: The new station is open and tracks have already been removed from the old station site, but the ribbon cutting has not happened yet. Be at the new station Thursday, June 28 at 10 am for this event. Mayor Beutler will be speaking about the need to bring commuter service and better interstate trains to Lincoln. His office was able to confirm that the new station is accessible to people walking and biking. Taxis cannot wait by the station, but are close by. Make sure you have a flashlight or headlights. Lighting through construction sites cannot be considered to be dependable.

Construction sites can also move. If this post is more than a month old, check the route before going to the new station. You can do this through the Haymarket website or check the route ahead of time.

What if Neither Proposal is OK?

6 pm, Thursday, November 3
Denver Union Station Historic Building Presentations
Colorado Convention Center, Rooms 201 & 203
700 14th Street, Denver
Light Rail: D, F, H

There are two competing proposals for the redevelopment of Union Station, both of which you can see in a couple of weeks. One by the Union Station Neighborhood Company and one by the Union Station Alliance. I cannot find any recent information about what the proposals will be, but it looks like Union Station Neighborhood Company is proposing a public market and restaurant and retail space with office space on the upper floors. Apparently, the Union Station Alliance is proposing a hotel for the upper floors with lots of retail on the ground floor. They are also proposing a lot of space for security.

I think that the public market concept looks better. There is more space given over to people who are taking the train and the services in the station are ones that train passengers would use. The more trains that run into the station, the more money that this concept can make. It creates an entity that might advocate for more long-distance trains to and from Denver as these are the passengers who are most likely to buy large amounts of food. It also might bring a farmer's market back to Union Station. In fact, this is the proposal that is the most flexible.

I am concerned about the hotel concept as boutique hotels are not usually successful near train stations because of the noise. There are a few large convention type hotels that are successful on top of train stations, but these are much larger than what is being proposed. Let's take the hotel over Nagoya Station in Japan as an example of a successful hotel in a similar price range to what is being proposed for Denver. First, the trains all run underground. Second, there are several stories of mall in between the train halls and the hotel. Third, more trains run into this station than will run into Denver, and they come from further away. Fourth, four million people live in the city of Nagoya. Small hotels near train stations with ground level tracks are usually cheap. I am concerned that putting a hotel in the station would create a reason not to put more trains into Union Station.

I am hoping that we do get something that allows people to buy groceries and relatively cheap takeout in the station, so the public market option looks to best.

How do you think we should use Union Station?

We Are Holding a Wake

From Edie Bryan, Colorail activist extraordinaire:


Come one and all to a wake, commemorating the historic tunnel at Denver Union Station.  It is scheduled to be demolished next Monday.  Therefore, we plan a memorial service, a wake, a celebration of its interesting history--what ever you want to call it. 

Where:  At Denver Union Station

When:  1:00 p.m. This Sunday, February 6, 2011    Before the  Superbowl game

Who:  Anyone and everyone who wishes to mourn for the loss of Denver's interesting History Tunnel

Speakers:  Those who have some good stories about people who used the tunnel for a variety of romantic or criminal activities

What to bring:  Probably some warm clothes, cameras, signs or posters Anyone have a microphone setup?


Spread the word to everybody!  History Buffs! Families!  Railroad enthusiasts!

I'm bringing some old black tombstones from some Halloweens of yesteryear.    

Lasting:  Maximum of half an hour, could be shorter.


We will be meeting on the Wynkoop Street side of the station. Buses 6, 10, 20, 28, 32, and 44 stop close to the station. You can contact Edie at 303-935-1020 if you have any questions.

Amtrak is leaving Denver's Union Station

On February 1, Amtrak will be leaving Denver's Union Station for a temporary station located at the intersection of 21st and Wewatta (1800 21st Street).

A couple of Colorail members have a bet going about this. One says that Amtrak will never get back into Union Station. Another members says that Amtrak will be able to move back because of the efforts of people like the members of Colorail.

We need to make sure that Amtrak gets back into Denver's historic train station. (Step One: Go to the meeting on Wednesday.)

How do I define accessibility?

So far, I have been saying that a station is accessible if someone who with mobility limitations (such as a wheelchair) can get to the trains from outside the station. I look to see if the elevators are maintained and easy to find. For people with other mobility issues, I look to see if there are escalators and if the path to the trains is straightforward.

None of the stations that I have been in have benches near the tracks which reduces the accessibility of the overall system.

I base my evaluations on the experiences of the people that I have known and what they consider difficult to overcome. I also assume that if I can't walk some place, that someone who has difficulty walking cannot either.

I have not been evaluating accessibility for the visually impaired, but I was recently reminded that I should. I think that, like the lack of benches, this may be a system-wide problem.

This also reminded me that I need stories from people with disabilities to find out what worked for them and what didn't.

On Station Design

Lost in Penn Station by Julia Turner starts with "Penn Station is a confusing place." Her opinion is not unique. Most people consider Grand Central the better of New York City's two major stations. Ms. Turner's article also mentions that Penn Station serves four times as many people than Grand Central.

Which leads to the point of this article: People will use a station if the trains from that station take them where they need to go at the times that they want to travel.

A good station will help people find their train, and provide services that travelers need. A good station is safe. Poor station design makes it difficult for people to find ticket windows and the trains themselves. Poor station design makes people walk across unlit areas and encourages people to walk on the tracks. But the trains are always the most important element. A poorly designed station with many trains will always have more passenger than the best station that only serves one or two routes.

Good station design can help ensure that people who are not used to train travel can successfully buy tickets, print out tickets they have bought online, and get to their trains on time. Good signs can make a well-designed station better and make a poorly designed station tolerable.

One problem is apparent in the photos of the signs in Penn Station, but not discussed in the article. The signs are for the companies that run the trains, not the destinations or type of train. If you don't know what "LIRR" stands for or that Amtrak runs inter-state trains, these signs are not helpful. This reflects the tendency in the US to market bus and train companies rather than buses and trains themselves.

As a previous post mentioned, this a problem for stations in Canada as well.