The Astros plan to take fans on a yearlong ride this season with the opening of a stadium that offers as much a glimpse of the future as it does the past.
People love old-time trains.
It's really one of the centerpieces of the stadium. While the Astros went high tech with a retractable roof and multi-dimensional scoreboard system, they also added a touch of the past designed to tie into the city's once bustling railroad industry of the 1920s. Union Station has been renovated and will serve as the gateway into Enron Field, providing the perfect backdrop for the 42,000-seat stadium on the east side of downtown. For the first time since the railroad connection shut down in 1974, train whistles will be heard throughout downtown on game days. We thought it would be interesting.