Dearborn Amtrak station to be named after U.S. Rep. Dingell

Today, Amtrak will begin service to the new John D. Dingell Transit Center in Dearborn, Mich. The station will be officially dedicated in honor of U.S. Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.) at a ceremony to be held Dec. 15.

The intermodal station is located two miles west of the old Amtrak station and is directly north of the Henry Ford complex. The new 16,000-square-foot facility was designed to promote intermodal transportation, connecting travelers via train, bus, taxi and pedestrian and bike paths to work destinations, education centers, cultural attractions, and shopping and recreation points in Dearborn and beyond, according to an Amtrak press release.

The transit center and associated trackwork was funded by $28.2 million in federal stimulus dollars. The facility is considered an important component in initiatives to boost commuter rail from Ann Arbor to Detroit, and accelerated-speed rail from Pontiac to Chicago, Amtrak officials said.

Owned by the city of Dearborn and operated by Amtrak, the facility features a pedestrian bridge over tracks that will allow travelers to access a new entrance to The Henry Ford complex. The transit center has a silver certification from the U.S. Green Building Councils Leadership in Environmental and Energy Design.

Dingell, who has represented Michigan in Congress since the mid-1950s, is retiring at the end of the current congressional session.