By 1963, the North Shore Line had closed. The line suffered another major blow when construction of the Edens Expressway finished in 1951. Alas, powerful automobile companies used their massive coffers and influence to do away with this line, thus forcing more people to drive.

It was an easy, cost-effective, and eco-friendly way of getting where you wanted to go. By 1926, the line enabled passengers to move between the two cities in under two hours. The problem has persisted, as many commuters experience train stations that are little more than glorified sheds.Ī poignant example of how the auto industry obliterated rail travel is the demise of the North Shore Line, an electric line that connected Chicago and Milwaukee. In the late 1940s and early 1950s, train stations became backwaters with no sense of arrival. Architects were forced to settle for something less. Rail lost its appeal and therefore, train station quality took a nosedive. Interest and resulting financial support for traditional train travel waned. However, at the same time, automobile manufacturers were cranking up production: Ford Motor Company assembled 14 million Model Ts between 19 (Hofstra University).Īmericans, enticed by the freedom and comfort of automobile travel, bought more cars. Photo courtesy Kyle Harris () An Auto-driven DevolutionĪccording to Duke University Libraries, the American rail industry reached its peak in 1920, when it transported more than a billion people. The arrival of the mass-produced automobile derailed the architectural emphasis on train stations. This changed the way people and society operated.

What previously took a month could now be done in a week or less. Suddenly, intercity travel became much safer and more efficient. A trip from one major city to another required putting their lives on the line and, in some cases, spending an entire summer trying to arrive at their destination before the weather worsened.Īlong came rail transit in the early nineteenth century. The Advent of Railīefore the invention of the train, people had two options for land travel: horse or foot. But there is good news: with the increasing focus on transit-oriented development and carbon footprint reduction, rail travel and train stations are poised to make a major comeback, albeit by overcoming a few obstacles.

However, with the introduction of the automobile, train travel (and therefore quality of train station design) took a major hit.

Many of our most prominent cities still revere the grand train stations that celebrate the glory of the rail era. Over the last two centuries, one of the most pivotal influencers of Midwestern architecture has been rail transit. A brief history of the rise, fall, and resurrection of train station architecture and the challenges it faces today

Terminal Town by Joseph P. Schwieterman