| Los Angeles Union Passenger Terminal glows Dodger Blue on October 16, 2017, to celebrate the local baseball team playing in the post-season. Opened in May 1939, Union Station was considered the last of the large passenger stations to be built. Ten years after opening, and after the end of World War II, it wasn't long before the number of passenger trains arriving and departing at this beautiful facility began to be pared down. The day before Amtrak started operations, the ATSF, SP and UP collectively operated 16 daily trains into and out of L.A. On May 1, 1971, Amtrak's first day, (about 32 years after the station opened), the number of daily passenger trains had shrunken to just 8 (along with 4 tri-weekly trains), and the station was looking a little worn. But today? In 2017, that station sees 28 Amtrak trains per day (not including the tri-weekly "Sunset Limited") and, on weekdays, 127 Metrolink trains (a few less on weekends). On top of that, the Metro Gold Line trolleys serve the passenger platforms, and below the station, Metro's Red and Purple Line subways whisk commuters toward Hollywood and the westside. That is more traffic than during this station's heyday! As for the station itself, it has been spruced up and expanded, and it is now a very busy transit hub for America's second largest city. |