Dual train stop puzzles riders

Metra riders are in agreement: The month-old station in Bartlett is beautiful, the amenities a welcome change.

But what's happening outside has left many annoyed or scratching their heads.

The chief complaint? Eastbound and westbound trains stop in different locations, about two blocks from each other. It's not a huge distance, but most people end up having a longer walk to their cars on one leg of their commute.

"I just assumed it was unfinished," said Aimee Newth, who recently moved to Hoffman Estates from Washington, D.C. "It's not a big deal in nice weather, but in the winter?"

The Metra station has a split platform design. That means inbound riders get on and off directly outside the new depot, but outbound riders get on and off across the tracks from the old station, now boarded up.

"It's not a mistake?" Celeste Penn of Bartlett asked. "I thought it was temporary."

But the inconvenience isn't an oversight by Metra or by village officials, who say building the platforms closer together would have been a difficult -- and expensive -- undertaking.

Metra would have had to level off a steep, 12-foot slope that drops off just feet away from the westbound tracks. Creating an even surface would encroach on a parking lot and numerous businesses.

"People have to pick whether they want to have a longer walk in the morning or at night," said Bartlett Community Development Director Jim Plonczynski, who added that the design complies with the Americans With Disabilities Act. "While it's longer, it's not like it's a mile or anything."

To avoid the split platform, Metra did propose picking a site farther east for the depot.

But Bartlett didn't want to isolate the station from the cluster of downtown businesses, especially with so much riding on the Town Center development.

The other complaint about the new Metra station comes not just from commuters but from drivers.

Oak Avenue should be open to traffic while westbound trains are loading and unloading, but the crossing gates have been staying down erroneously.

"It's a sophisticated signal system, but some westbound trains still aren't clearing the intersection," said Plonczynski. "And even the ones that do pull far enough forward aren't letting the signal release."

Unlike the split platform, this is a temporary glitch. The village is working with Metra and its engineers to fix the problem and provide train crews with training.

"I would hope it could be fixed fairly soon," said Plonczynski. "That was the intent of the design."