Chicago's new Metropolitan Lounge Information

[Lonestar648]

The new lounge will be great since we will be traveling through Chicago third week of June. Really look forward to seeing the new location.

 

[Mystic River Dragon]

Thanks, Tyler! I already know where I will fit in if I ever get to Chicago--I will head straight for the Older/Antique section!

 

[SarahZ]

Tyler, will the showers be "free" to those with BC/sleeper tickets, or is there a secondary charge?

Would Coach passengers be able to pay to access the lounge and take a shower? I think that would be a nice perk for those who are ticketed in Coach and would like to pay to use a shower during a layover.

 

[TylerP42]

Tyler, will the showers be "free" to those with BC/sleeper tickets, or is there a secondary charge?

Would Coach passengers be able to pay to access the lounge and take a shower? I think that would be a nice perk for those who are ticketed in Coach and would like to pay to use a shower during a layover.

2 heated showers with heated floors for males, 2 heated showers with heated floors for females.

 

[districtRich]

When I was coming back to DC from Detroit via Chicago last month, the lounge attendant was boarding us for the Cardinal and she had us waiting by the exit door to the platforms where they have some signage for the new lounge. She gave us probably a two or three minute talk about the new lounge and the amenities and how expensive all the new furniture and fixtures were. You could tell she was super excited that she was going to be working in a very nice lounge instead of that current cramped lounge.

 

[TylerP42]

When I was coming back to DC from Detroit via Chicago last month, the lounge attendant was boarding us for the Cardinal and she had us waiting by the exit door to the platforms where they have some signage for the new lounge. She gave us probably a two or three minute talk about the new lounge and the amenities and how expensive all the new furniture and fixtures were. You could tell she was super excited that she was going to be working in a very nice lounge instead of that current cramped lounge.

I know who you're talking about. I think she told me her sister helped design it

 

[districtRich]

When I was coming back to DC from Detroit via Chicago last month, the lounge attendant was boarding us for the Cardinal and she had us waiting by the exit door to the platforms where they have some signage for the new lounge. She gave us probably a two or three minute talk about the new lounge and the amenities and how expensive all the new furniture and fixtures were. You could tell she was super excited that she was going to be working in a very nice lounge instead of that current cramped lounge.

I know who you're talking about. I think she told me her sister helped design it

She was thrilled. It was fun seeing her so excited about the new lounge

 

[TraneMan]

Thanks for sharing this, Tyler!

 

[Lonestar648]

Looking at the floor plan diagram it looks like the Lounge has direct access to the south tracks. Wonder how they will handle the Empire Builder and Hiawatha's that depart on the north tracks.

 

[TylerP42]

Floor plan. the 2 "half" photos are a close up of the concourse level.

 

[neroden]

Looking at the floor plan diagram it looks like the Lounge has direct access to the south tracks.

Not exactly... what the diagram doesn't show is what's on the other side of that door. It's the former taxi loop. That does connect to the concourse for the south tracks, but in a somewhat indirect manner; I'm not clear on whether they'll be using it (though I would if I were them, just to get out of the way of the rest of the pedestrian traffic flow).
The taxi loop could also be used as a Redcap bypass to the north tracks to avoid the main pedestrian flows -- they do stuff like that in Washington DC -- but I doubt they'll do that.

 

[TylerP42]

Looking at the floor plan diagram it looks like the Lounge has direct access to the south tracks.

Not exactly... what the diagram doesn't show is what's on the other side of that door. It's the former taxi loop. That does connect to the concourse for the south tracks, but in a somewhat indirect manner; I'm not clear on whether they'll be using it (though I would if I were them, just to get out of the way of the rest of the pedestrian traffic flow).
The taxi loop could also be used as a Redcap bypass to the north tracks to avoid the main pedestrian flows -- they do stuff like that in Washington DC -- but I doubt they'll do that.

There will be taxi and car unloading there. Red carpet up to it, the red carpet will be imbedded into the concrete

 

[andersone]

Actually "Oregon Trail" is an historic piece of software. Originally created by the Minnesota Educational Computing Consortium (MECC) it demonstrated that Apple Computers (and for those that remember TRS-80 as well) could allow analytical consideration of a real time event in a manner 6th grade students could comprehend. The original shoot em up part (typing BLAM to fire a weapon) was rather crude and the pre hi-rez graphics would be pooh-poohed by current aficionados,, but nonetheless it helped spark the explosion of Apple hardware into classrooms.

 

[TylerP42]

Actually "Oregon Trail" is an historic piece of software. Originally created by the Minnesota Educational Computing Consortium (MECC) it demonstrated that Apple Computers (and for those that remember TRS-80 as well) could allow analytical consideration of a real time event in a manner 6th grade students could comprehend. The original shoot em up part (typing BLAM to fire a weapon) was rather crude and the pre hi-rez graphics would be pooh-poohed by current aficionados,, but nonetheless it helped spark the explosion of Apple hardware into classrooms.

I think you have the wrong thread...

 

[Ryan]

No that was discussed upthread.

Thanks for the pictures, I had heard rumors of showers but wasn't sure if they were legit. Can't wait to see the place.

Curious. I was born in 1976, which is usually considered Gen X but is really the "Oregon Trail Generation" (http://socialmediaweek.org/blog/2015/04/oregon-trail-generation/), closer to Millennials....

...and I'm gonna go for the Older/Antique area. They may find a lot of 20-to-40s hanging out in that upper lounge.

Meanwhile, the 40-to-70s age bracket grew up when plastic was new and exciting and will probably head for the "modern look" downstairs!

January 1977 here. That article speaks the truth. I'll probably bounce between the antique and ooh-shiny-plastic areas and completely avoid the children's area.

Also, I've made at least three "Oregon Trail" jokes this week.

Yep, that's us! (79 here).
You can play Oregon Trail here:

https://archive.org/details/msdos_Oregon_Trail_The_1990

Sarah, you got a broken arm on the first day on the trail. Best of luck.

Screen Shot 2016-01-28 at 10.29.38 PM.png

 

[TylerP42]

No that was discussed upthread.

My bad.

 

[abcnews]

The shower availability is a wonderful idea. Currently, when you arrive into Chicago on the Capital Limited, you really have to scramble to fit in a shower on the train, and be able to grab breakfast in the dinning car. After June 1st, if your train is on time (or arriving early), you can skip the shower on the train and wait for the better one in the Metropolitan lounge.

This will also allow for travel in coach (into Chicago) if you are already booked in a room on a connecting train out of Chicago, and to be able take a shower during the layover.

Imagine for example, if you were planing to take a cross country rail journey, and on the day you pick, the rooms on the Capital Limited (or Cardinal / LSL) were rather expensive. In that case - just forgo the high bucket room fee on the first night, and book a coach ticket to Chicago. As long as you are booked in a roomette (or bedroom) departing Chicago on a connecting train, you can use the lounge.

Thanks for sharing this. This new lounge certainly adds value to the additional fee paid for a sleeping car upgrade. Wonderful improvement!

 

[AG1]

No that was discussed upthread.

My bad.

You are not bad ! We can blame those that hijack the topic for their trivial enjoyment. Thanks for the photos.

 

[Railroad Bill]

Having a difficult time picturing the shower area in the Metro Lounge and whether long lines of individuals wanting to use the shower might be a great topic for a cartoon strip . My current "dream cloud" looks like a locker room at the Y and I think I might want to avoid that . Better to get up a little early on my Capitol Ltd and hit that shower before breakfast. Just one old man's opinion

 

[VentureForth]

I'm the oldie at 1972 here. Wowser.

I introduced my daughter to the Oregon Trail. Apple II+ user here. Was able to get a port of it through a hacked Wii, but the loopholes were closed. It crashed with it asked for Disc 2, anyway.

Looks really cool. Any idea what the price tag is?

 

[TylerP42]

I'm the oldie at 1972 here. Wowser.

I introduced my daughter to the Oregon Trail. Apple II+ user here. Was able to get a port of it through a hacked Wii, but the loopholes were closed. It crashed with it asked for Disc 2, anyway.

Looks really cool. Any idea what the price tag is?

Around $9 Million. About $8 Million for the lounge, and about $1 Million in furniture.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

Tyler, will the showers be "free" to those with BC/sleeper tickets, or is there a secondary charge?

Would Coach passengers be able to pay to access the lounge and take a shower? I think that would be a nice perk for those who are ticketed in Coach and would like to pay to use a shower during a layover.

2 heated showers with heated floors for males, 2 heated showers with heated floors for females.

On the one hand this lounge concept sounds really exciting. A huge improvement over the current lounge in almost every way. On the other hand the fact that only two showers will be available per side makes me wonder how anyone will access them in a timely fashion. Seems like you could be waiting several hours in line for the privilege. Either that or you'll have to reserve them weeks or even months in advance. As currently designed the shower option feels more like an advertising bullet point than a practical service you can expect to experience as part of your connection.

 

[neroden]

I'm the oldie at 1972 here. Wowser.

I introduced my daughter to the Oregon Trail. Apple II+ user here. Was able to get a port of it through a hacked Wii, but the loopholes were closed. It crashed with it asked for Disc 2, anyway.

Looks really cool. Any idea what the price tag is?

Around $9 Million. About $8 Million for the lounge, and about $1 Million in furniture.

I assume that does include asbestos & lead abatement though. (Which is really really expensive.)

 

[neroden]

The taxi loop could also be used as a Redcap bypass to the north tracks to avoid the main pedestrian flows -- they do stuff like that in Washington DC -- but I doubt they'll do that.

There will be taxi and car unloading there. Red carpet up to it, the red carpet will be imbedded into the concrete

Wow. They're actually reopening that for access by ordinary cars and taxis!? It was closed due to 9/11 security paranoia. It says something very good if they're reopening it as a dropoff point.
Really, I'd like to hear confirmation of that, because I didn't think it would happen for decades. If the security paranoia is wearing off that's great news...

 

[crescent-zephyr]

The taxi loop could also be used as a Redcap bypass to the north tracks to avoid the main pedestrian flows -- they do stuff like that in Washington DC -- but I doubt they'll do that.

There will be taxi and car unloading there. Red carpet up to it, the red carpet will be imbedded into the concrete

Wow. They're actually reopening that for access by ordinary cars and taxis!? It was closed due to 9/11 security paranoia. It says something very good if they're reopening it as a dropoff point.
Really, I'd like to hear confirmation of that, because I didn't think it would happen for decades. If the security paranoia is wearing off that's great news...

Based on my trip through CUS in November, security is anything but wearing off. I was questioned for taking pictures of the great hall, questioned and luggage searched in my roomette before departure, and noticed way more search teams and tables set up than ever before.

The new lounge does look exciting. So the Legacy Club is totally separate from this?