Millennium Station

Millennium Station
Location	151 East Randolph Street Chicago Loop, Chicago, IL 60601
Coordinates	(150 N/150 E) 41°53′09″N 87°37′24″W / 41.88594°N 87.62345°W / 41.88594; -87.62345Coordinates: 41°53′09″N 87°37′24″W / 41.88594°N 87.62345°W / 41.88594; -87.62345
Owned by	Metra
Line(s)	Metra Electric District   South Shore Line
Platforms	6 island platforms (plus one unused)
Tracks	13
Connections	CTA "L" Lines:   Red Line at Lake/State Station via Chicago Pedway   Green Line   Brown Line   Orange Line   Pink Line   Purple Line rush hours only (at Randolph/Wabash Station, 1 block west) CTA Bus Lines, Chicago Pedway
Construction
Disabled access	Yes
Other information
Fare zone	A (Metra) 1 (South Shore)
History
Opened	1856, 1926
Rebuilt	1985, 2005
Electrified	1500v DC
Previous names	Randolph Street station or Randolph Street terminal
Services
Preceding station   Metra   Following station Terminus Metra Electric District Van Buren Street toward University Park, South Chicago, or Blue Island NICTD Terminus South Shore Line Van Buren Street toward South Bend Airport

Millennium Station (formerly Randolph Street terminal; sometimes called Randolph Street station or Randolph/South Water Street station) is a major commuter rail terminal in downtown Chicago that serves the Metra Electric District to University Park, Blue Island, and South Chicago; and the South Shore Line to Gary and South Bend, Indiana. Located under Millennium Park, the terminal was established in the 1800s by the Illinois Central Railroad (IC). It was rebuilt in the early 21st century and is now owned by the Northeast Illinois Regional Commuter Railroad Corporation (Metra). Not counting commuters on the South Shore Line, over 18,000 people board Metra trains at Millennium Station each day. During peak periods, trains leave the terminal as frequently as twice a minute.

As Great Central Station, Randolph Street terminal, along with Van Buren Street a few blocks south, was IC's primary downtown Chicago terminal until the completion in 1893 of Central Station (closed 1972) just south of Grant Park at today's Roosevelt Road. It still received many trains thereafter, but was of secondary importance. Its importance increased dramatically in 1926 with the electrification of commuter services on IC's main line and its Blue Island and South Chicago branches. Commuter trains from all three branches were now routed into the Randolph Street terminal, while intercity traffic continued to terminate at Central Station.

Originally, the station platforms were exposed and the ticketing facilities and the waiting room were located in the attached facility. The construction of Millennium Park gradually placed the entire station "underground." Millennium Station existed in a state of perpetual construction from the mid-1980s until 2005: exposed steel girders covered in flame retardant, unpainted plywood walls, bare concrete floors, and dim utility lights created a notoriously unfriendly, cave-like environment. Skidmore, Owings and Merrill was the architect for the station redesign.