Not many parking garages double as train depots. But when the new underground parking garage at the Museum of Science and Industry opens in early 1998, its centerpiece will be the restored Burlington Pioneer Zephyr. The Zephyr, the world's first streamlined, diesel-electric, articulated train, first captured the world's attention on May 26, 1934 when it set a land speed record by hurtling non-stop from Denver to Chicago in just over 13 hours.

A platform resembling an actual train station will be erected along most of the 197-foot length of the restored Zephyr, from engine cab to observation car, allowing guided tours that recreate the on-board experience with animatronic and audiovisual enhancements. Periodically, light and sound effects will give an illusion of motion to the train. In addition, peripheral exhibits will feature displays on diesel technology, streamlining, and the Century of Progress World's Fair.

The Zephyr exhibit and tour‹which will be seen by nearly all Museum visitors because of its location adjacent to the Museum's new underground ticketing lobby and entrance‹will recreate the excitement that its record-breaking run gave to a country mired in the Great Depression; illuminate the train's subsequent 26 years of service; highlight the period as a confluence of science, technology, and art; emphasize diesel-electric, material and stream-lining technologies; and illustrate that, while the American social, economic, and political climate of the 1930s contributed to its fame, the Zephyr project was only possible because imaginative, visionary and courageous officials made it so.

Following its historic Denver to Chicago run, the Burlington Pioneer Zephyr was toured by 1.5 million visitors at the Century of Progress exposition on Chicago's lakefront in 1934, and then served as a passenger train for 26 years. Donated to the Museum in 1960, the Zephyr was displayed outside until late 1994, when it was moved to Northern Railcar for more than 16,000 hours of painstaking restoration.

The restoration is timed to coincide with the construction of the Museum's new underground parking garage, which will offer 1,500 indoor spaces when completed in early 1998. The restored Zephyr will be housed in a climate-controlled glass shelter in the center of the lowest level of the garage. Visitors who park on the two upper levels will also be able to look down on the train because the glass structure housing the Zephyr will reach up to all three floors. The Zephyr exhibit will open when garage construction is complete.

The new garage is part of MSI 2000, a comprehensive master plan for restoring and enhancing the Museum of Science and Industry, one of the world's premier educational and cultural institutions.

The Museum of Science and Industry is located at 57th Street and Lake Shore Drive and is open every day of the year except Christmas. Museum admission is $6 for adults, $5 for senior citizens (65+), and $2.50 for children aged 3-11. Children under 3 are admitted free. Groups of 20 or more receive special discounts by calling (773) 684-1414, Ext. 2290. Museum hours are 9:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday; 9:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. weekends and holidays; From Memorial Day through Labor Day, the Museum is open 9:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. daily. For more information or to plan a visit to the Museum, please call (773) 684-1414, or outside the Chicago area, 1-800 GO TO MSI (1-800-468-6674).

The Museum of Science and Industry is supported in part through the generosity of the people of Chicago through the Chicago Park District.