Metra's West Line to Elburn
Mayor Willey's Elburn Web Log has some posts with plenty of pictures of Metra's opening of the new extension to Elburn.
From the looks of it the Station hasn't been built yet, but Mayor Willey had drawings of it earlier. It remined me of the old Chicago Aurora & Elgin station over at Ardmore in Villa Park.
Speaker Hastert and State Senator Lauzen both attended yesterday's opening. Now please figure out how to open the line all the way to Dekalb and restore the fine Depot there so my kids don't have to hop a bus to get to the train for the loop.
Speaker Hastert
Illinois Senator Chris Lauzen and Mayor Willey.
5 comments:
Thanks for the Villa Park photo, walked or drove by that station many times in my life.
Bill,
Nice photo of the old VP station. Sadly, that station is retired -- along with the train track that is now prairie path -- and is not the Villa Park metra station. The new Metra station is an eyesore who's bleakness is overshadowed only by the derelict cars in the auto-lot next door.
Also sadly, while the neighborhood around the old station is being revitalized, the area around the Villa Park metra station remains barren of any development whatsoever.
It does have a big parking lot though.
I know the older metra stations look bad. I took some shots of the new station in Elgin's National Street.
It's a classic looking building!
I can post them here if there is interest. It think they recycled the slate shingles from some of the buildings at the old Elgin MH center.
Villa Park did a nice job with the main CA&E station not far from Ardmore.
"Now please figure out how to open the line all the way to Dekalb and restore the fine Depot there so my kids don't have to hop a bus to get to the train for the loop."
Problem 1: Boone, DeKalb, Grundy, Kendall, & LaSalle are not currently part of the RTA. That's an issue.
Problem 2: Kendall, Grundy, & LaSalle have all made efforts (& are working diligently) to get things going regarding commuter rail to their communities, but I've heard nothing out of those weenies in DeKalb.
I know the municipalities (DeKalb, Sycamore, Genoa, etc.) are working on the future, but my impression at DeKalb County government stopped thinking circa 1998 and went on life support. It's like their biggest concern is getting the new parking lots in place directly across the street (East) from the DeKalb County Office Building.
I've raised the issue with the DeKalb County Board chair, asked for at least a committee to be formed to get the ball rolling. Ultimately I envision service along the lines of what Harvard has. The previous board chair (now state rep) seemed to not be totally friendly to the idea 3 years ago, but times have changed and I'm trying.
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