KANSAS CITY, Mo. — With a hearty “All aboard,” passenger rail service officially returned to a refurbished Union Station on Tuesday, in what local leaders view as a focal point for urban redevelopment, the Associated Press reported.
With a four-piece band playing railroad tunes in the station’s Grand Hall, dozens of city leaders, station workers and railroad enthusiasts opened Amtrak’s new ticket and waiting areas.
Turner White, chief executive officer of Union Station Kansas City Inc., said Amtrak’s return symbolized the “usefulness that passenger rail service represents.”
“It’s a great day in Kansas City,” White said.
Amtrak offers service nationwide, including two trains daily between St. Louis and Kansas City. According to Amtrak figures, 113,319 passengers got on and off trains in Kansas City, the 62nd-busiest station in the country.
Two regular railroaders and Union Station activists are Pete and Carolyn McMasters, both 78, of Roeland Park, Kan., who have logged more than 153,000 miles since 1973.
The couple purchased the final ticket sold in Union Station when Amtrak moved out in 1985. They also bought the first pair when the counter opened for business. Recently, they have volunteered helping passengers navigate Amtrak’s new location.
“A happy passenger is a repeat passenger,” Carolyn McMasters said.
Outside the station, a newly constructed covered walkway leads to the elevated platform with a view of Kansas City’s freight house and downtown to the north. Mayor Kay Barnes said Union Station served as the heart of the River Crown Plaza, the city’s long-range plan for development between the Missouri River and the Country Club Plaza.
“It is the jewel in the crown of Kansas City,” Barnes said, adding that Union Station could become the gateway for visitors and urban growth in the 21st century.
The return of Amtrak is the latest piece in Union Station’s rebirth, which began with its reopening in 1999. Built in 1914, the station was once the hub of activity in Kansas City, with more than 200 trains passing through at its peak.
Bob and Frances Chiartano traveled more than 100 miles from Pittsburg, Kan., to attend the dedication. Railroads have been a part of their lives for more than 40 years, including Bob’s 40 years of work with Kansas City Southern Railway.
They said they had considered taking passenger trains across the country, but the described Amtrak’s former home adjacent to the station as “intimidating.”
“We’re planning on taking a trip to Chicago now that we have a new station,” said Frances Chiartano, 60.
Her husband said that despite the romance of riding the rails and the refurbished stations, Americans will never recreate the glory days of passenger trains.
“People are in too much of hurry, but they miss a lot,” said Bob Chiartano, 65.