{{Short description|Railroad station in Homewood, Illinois}} {{Use American English|date=February 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=February 2025}} {{Infobox station | style = Amtrak | name = Homewood, IL | image = Amtrak platform at Homewood, looking north.jpg | caption = Homewood Amtrak platform in January 2025. The [[Metra]] tracks and platform are on the left. | address = 18015 Park Avenue | coordinates = {{coord|41.5624|-87.6686|type:railwaystation_region:US-IL|display=inline,title}} | borough = [[Homewood, Illinois]] | country = United States | owned = CN/Metra<ref name=great /> | line = [[Canadian National Railway|CN]] Chicago Subdivision (Amtrak)<br /> University Park Sub District (Metra) <!-- the physical "line" is not the same as "services" which are detailed below -->| other = {{rint|bus|1}} [[Pace (transit)|Pace]] | platform = 2 [[Island platforms]] | tracks = 4 (2 Amtrak, 2 Metra Electric) | parking = Yes | bicycle = | mpassengers = {{rail pass box|system=Amtrak|passengers={{Amtrak ridership|Homewood}} annually{{Amtrak ridership|citationIL}}|pass_year={{Amtrak ridership|date}}}} {{Rail pass box | system = Metra | passengers = 1,171 (avg. weekday)<ref name=":0" /> | pass_year = 2018 | pass_percent = -10.5 | pass_rank = 32 out of 236 (Metra)<ref name=":0" /> }} | opened = {{start date and age|1923}} | rebuilt = | electrified = 1926<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1926/08/08/archives/chicago-welcomes-electrified-roads-illinois-central-line-does-away.html|title=CHICAGO WELCOMES ELECTRIFIED ROADS; Illinois Central Line Does Away With Coal-Burners on Its Suburban Trains.|date=1926-08-08|newspaper=The New York Times|access-date=2026-02-24}}</ref> (Metra) | accessible = Yes | code = {{Amtrak code|HMW}} | zone = 3 (Metra) | services = {{Adjacent stations|system1=Amtrak |line1=City of New Orleans|left1=Kankakee|right1=Chicago |line2=Saluki/Illini|left2=Kankakee|right2=Chicago |system3=Metra |line3=Metra Electric|type3=Main Line|left3=Flossmoor|right3=Calumet }} | other_services_header = Former services | other_services_collapsible = yes | other_services = {{Adjacent stations |system1=Amtrak |line1=James Whitcomb Riley and George Washington|left1=Chicago|right1=Kankakee (Penn Central)|note-mid1=''1971–1974'' |line2=Campus|left2=Rantoul|note-mid2=1971–1972|right2=Chicago (Central Station)|to-right3=Chicago (Central Station) |line3=Floridian (1971–1979)|left3=Kankakee (Penn Central)|right3=Chicago (Central Station)|note-mid3=(rerouted 1972) |system4=Illinois Central Railroad |line4=main|left4=Matteson|right4=Harvey |line5=Electric Suburban|left5=Flossmoor|right5=Calumet|type5=Main Line }} | map_state = collapsed | route_map = {{Routemap|legend=track|inline=1|map= \vSTRfg!~MFADEg\vSTRfg!~MFADEg\POINTERg@gq~~{{ric|Amtrak}}~~ ~~{{BSto|[[City of New Orleans (train)|CONO]], [[Illini and Saluki]]|north to [[Chicago Union Station]]}} POINTERf@fq\vSTR\vSTR\~~{{ric|Metra}}~~ ~~{{ric|Metra|ME}} ''north to {{stl|Metra|Millennium}}'' RP2q!~MFADEgq!~lhvSTR(l)\vSTR!~lhvSTR(r)\vSTR\tRP2q!~MFADEfq~~{{0|10}}~~[[Dixie Highway]] vSTR\vPSTR(M) vPSTR(M)\vPSTR(M) vPSTR(M)\vPSTR(M) vPSTR(M)\vPSTR(M) XPLTq!~MFADEgq\XPLTTe!~vSTR\XPLTTe!~vSTR\XPLTq!~MFADEfq POINTERf@fq\vÜSTl\vSTR\~~{{ric|Metra}}~~ ~~{{ric|Metra|ME}} ''south to {{stl|Metra|University Park}}'' \vSTRfg!~MFADEf\vSTRfg!~MFADEf\POINTERg@gq~~{{ric|Amtrak}}~~ ~~{{BSsplit|[[City of New Orleans (train)|CONO]] ''south to {{amtk|New Orleans}}''|[[Illini and Saluki]] ''south to {{amtk|Carbondale}}''}} }} | mapframe = yes | mapframe-zoom = 15 | mapframe-marker-color = #000 | mapframe-marker = rail }} '''Homewood station''' is an [[Amtrak]] intercity and [[Metra]] commuter [[train station]] in [[Homewood, Illinois]]. It is also the location of the '''Homewood Railroad Park Museum'''.
Served by the [[Metra Electric District]], Homewood is {{convert|23.5|mi|km}} from that line's northern terminus at [[Millennium Station]].<ref>[http://web.me.com/willvdv/chirailfan/mmelec.html Metra Railfan Tips – Metra Electric Line]</ref> It is six stops away from the line's southern terminus at {{stl|Metra|University Park}}. In Metra's zone-based fare system, Homewood is located in zone 3. {{As of|2018}}, Homewood is the 32nd busiest of Metra's 236 non-downtown stations, with an average of 1,171 weekday boardings.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://metrarail.com/sites/default/files/assets/planning/ridership/2018_summary_results_report_final.pdf|title=Commuter Rail System Station Boarding/Alighting Count: Summary Results Fall 2018|date=April 2019|website=Metra|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190526034459/https://metrarail.com/sites/default/files/assets/planning/ridership/2018_summary_results_report_final.pdf|archive-date=26 May 2019|url-status=}}</ref> It is also {{convert|25|mi|km}} from [[Chicago Union Station|Union Station]], the northern terminus of the three Amtrak services which stop here.
== History == In 1851, the [[Illinois Central Railroad]] began construction of their new rail line which branched south of Chicago to what is now the Village of Homewood. The first passenger train to run on this line ran from Chicago to Kankakee, IL on August 5, 1853, and stopped in present day Homewood. Also in 1853, the Illinois Central built a one-and-a-half story depot to serve to area. When the depot was built, the nearest town to the new depot was the large village of Thornton, IL, about three miles to the east of the depot, and the depot was named the "Illinois Central Thornton Depot" for sixteen years. In 1869, the depot was officially renamed to the Homewood Station.
The Illinois Central Railroad built the current Homewood Depot in 1923 to serve the ''[[Panama Limited]]'' and ''[[Seminole Limited]]''.<ref name="great">[http://www.greatamericanstations.com/Stations/HMW/Station_view Great American Stations]. Accessed March 21, 2013.</ref><ref name="Overhaul">{{cite news |last1=Nolan |first1=Mike |title=Homewood's historic Amtrak train station overhaul underway; Metra station is next |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/daily-southtown/ct-sta-metra-amtrak-homewood-station-improvements-st-0929-20200928-vx4otkiiuvazlh4ltzyfbg4dge-story.html |accessdate=29 September 2020 |agency=[[Chicago Tribune]] |date=28 September 2020}}</ref> The station house, now used by Amtrak, was built in a [[mission revival]] style in order to complement the architecture of the clubhouse of the nearby [[Ravisloe Country Club]].<ref name="Overhaul" />
Three years after the station opened, commuter services began. Throughout the years, the station also served such intercity trains as the ''[[City of New Orleans (train)|City of New Orleans]]'', ''Creole'', and ''[[Green Diamond]]''. In 1971, [[Amtrak]] assumed control of the Illinois Central's passenger operations and continued to stop at Homewood. Metra purchased the commuter services in 1987. In 2003 the Homewood Rail Heritage Committee approved the installation of a train watching platform for railfans similar to that of the [[Rochelle Railroad Park]] in [[Rochelle, Illinois]]. As with many suburban Metra stations, bus connections are provided by [[Pace (transit)|Pace Transit Systems]].
On the Metra Electric, it is a regular stop on the main line. On Amtrak, it is served by the regional {{lnl|Amtrak|Illini/Saluki}} and the long-distance ''City of New Orleans.''
=== 2020s renovation === The station underwent renovations in the early 2020s. The renovations improved facilities and brought the station complex into compliance with the [[Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990]]. Prior to the renovation, among the accessibility issues was a lack of an accessible path to the platforms from the west-side of the tracks (where Amtrak's station building is located).<ref name=Overhaul /><ref name=-"patrchcelebrate" />
The first part of the project was a $15 million renovation by Amtrak of its facilities at the station. This project utilized federal funds. The Amtrak station closed in August 2020 for the renovations.<ref name=Overhaul /> Much of the architectural features of the Amtrak portion of the station were retained, as the facility is on the Illinois Register of Historical Places. It was expanded with a new structure.<ref name=Overhaul /> Amtrak demolished the former boarding platform and built a new covered island platform to serve the two tracks that its trains utilize at the station.<ref name=Overhaul /><ref name=-"patrchcelebrate">{{cite web |last1=Sheikah |first1=Yasmeen |title=Officials Celebrate $29 Million Amtrak And Metra Station Project |url=https://patch.com/illinois/tinleypark/officials-celebrate-29-million-amtrak-metra-station-project |website=Tinley Park, IL Patch |access-date=13 June 2022 |language=en |date=28 September 2020}}</ref>
After Amtrak completed its renovation of its facilities, Metra separately began a $14 million renovation of their facilities at the station. Metra replaced their station structure at Harwood Avenue and Ridge Road with a new structure, and renovated the track-access tunnel. It was funded through a combined $9 million funds from the [[Federal Transit Administration]] and [[Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning]], with a further $4 million coming from Metra, $585,000 coming from Homewood, and $300,000 coming from [[Cook County, Illinois|Cook County]]. Metra's renovation of their facilities at the Homewood station was announced in 2020, and was part of a five-year capital investment plan involving the renovation of nine stations (including Homewood) on the Metra Electric District.<ref name=Overhaul /><ref>{{cite web |last1=Mahoney |first1=Adam |title=Homewood rail station shared by Amtrak, Metra set for $29 million upgrade |url=https://chicago.suntimes.com/2020/9/28/21473711/29-million-improvementshomewood-amtrak-metra-ada-cook-county |website=Chicago Sun-Times |access-date=13 June 2022 |language=en |date=28 September 2020}}</ref>
== Bus connections == '''[[Pace (transit)|Pace]]''' *<nowiki> 356 Harvey/Homewood/Tinley Park </nowiki> *<nowiki> 359 Robbins/South Kedzie Avenue (weekdays only) </nowiki>
== References == {{reflist}}
== External links == {{commons category-inline|Homewood (Amtrak station)}} {{Amtrak web|HMW|Homewood, IL}} {{Metra web|Metra Electric|HOMEWOOD|Homewood}} *[http://www.trainweb.org/usarail/homewood.htm Homewood Amtrak Station (USA Rail Guide -- Train Web)] *{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20100127002901/http://www.blackhawknrhs.org/homewood.htm Homewood Railroad Park (NRHS: Blackhawk Chapter)]}} *[http://web.me.com/willvdv/chirailfan/pmelec5.jpg Chicago Railfan image (Homewood Station)]
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