Picking up where we left off yesterday, here are details of the rest of Andy’s and my tour of the project. In this post, we will get inside-the-fence views of the project from the surface.

Both photos below show progress of the newest section of the bus terminal. I took the first one from inside Union Station. Atop the shorter columns with lower beams will be tracks commuter rail and Amtrak. The taller columns with higher beams are the bases for passenger platforms. As you may recall from earlier posts, there will be eight sets of tracks: one Amtrak, five commuter rail, and two spares.

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The next photo is looking down the entrance/exit ramp. Buses will access this ramp from 18th Street and from the I-25 HOV lane. Recall that there is another ramp at the other end of the terminal with access to 20th Street and 15th Street via another section of 18th Street and Chestnut Place.

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Andy posed for the photo below to give scale to the height of the structure. He is standing next to one of the bus terminal walls. From every angle, this bus terminal is big.

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In related news, the public plaza surrounding the Chestnut Pavilion will open on May 18. Trees are being planted and lighting is being installed. It will be impressive, especially at night, with lights under the edges of the planter seats, lights shining up through the trees, spot lights on the three ventilation towers, and decorative lighting throughout the area. Andy plans to cover the opening event on the 18th.

Backfilling on the south side of the terminal is nearly complete. The huge pile dirt is still pretty huge so there may be enough on-site dirt to finish the job.