Alton station (Illinois)


Alton Regional Multimodal Transportation Center, also known as Alton, is a station in Alton, Illinois, that is served by Amtrak's Lincoln Service and the Texas Eagle. This was also a stop for the Ann Rutledge until April 2007. It is one of three Amtrak stations in the St. Louis metropolitan area; the other two are the Gateway Multimodal Transportation Center located in downtown St. Louis, and the Amtrak station in Kirkwood, Missouri.

History

The former Alton Railroad station, later used by the Gulf, Mobile and Ohio Railroad was built of brick. This station was located on College Avenue, south of the current station location. The 1928-built station was demolished after the current transportation center was opened.
Under the Federal Railroad Administration's High-Speed Intercity Passenger Rail program, the state of Illinois received $1.2 billion to improve the Chicago-St. Louis rail corridor so passenger trains will be able to attain regular speeds of. Part of the funding awarded to the Illinois Department of Transportation included $7.4 million for the construction of a new station in Alton, which is one of the busiest Amtrak stops in the state. In December 2011, the city received an additional $13.85 million for the new station through the U.S. Department of Transportation's Transportation Investments Generating Economic Recovery program.
The Alton Regional Multimodal Transportation Center, which opened September 13, 2017, accommodates intercity passenger rail, local and regional buses, taxis, and cyclists. IDOT architects designed the station, and the city will then assume ownership and maintain the property.