Union Station In Dallas Turns 100 Years Old
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DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - Union Station is turning 100 years old, and a centennial celebration has been planned for the Dallas icon. Mayor Mike Rawlings and other city leaders are gathering Monday to honor the station. The $6.5 million project in 1916 unified a divided rail system.
After experiencing a decline, there has been a resurgence in rail ridership over the last several years. More people are choosing to travel on DART, the TRE and Amtrak. According to a state rail advocate, growing populations in the Metroplex are choking the DFW area's highways with traffic. That has people looking for other ways to travel.
Plus, with a high-speed rail planned for Dallas within the next few years, Union Station will be even more critical than ever.
"It's making a comeback, because we've run out of space," stated Texas Rail Advocates board member Karl Ziebarth. "We have to make use of the rail more to handle the physical expansion of both freight and passenger traffic. As my grandfather used to say -- every day they make more babies, no more land."
Union Station remains a busy transportation center in Dallas, and much of the station's architecture remains unchanged. The celebration on Monday includes a miniature display of the station and historical displays chronicling the station's last century in the city.