Major Stations Under Construction

[The Davy Crockett]

The recent threads asking how long until the Denver station is done, and the update on Seattle's King St. Station got me thinking about how many of the 'larger' Amtrak stations are currently being worked on. This is what I can think of offhand:

DEN, SEA, PDX (still?), LAX, WAS, NOL, MIA, NYP (has the ceremonial first shovel been shown off?), MSP,

Is the Raleigh station in North Carolina getting work?

What am I missing?

 

[Eric S]

CHI - ongoing work to relocate the Metropolitan Lounge (to be followed by work to convert the current Metropolitan Lounge to additional seating for the "regular" waiting lounge area). Probably additional work beyond that that I have forgotten.

 

[Cho Cho Charlie]

Is SFA still under construction?

 

[MrFSS]

CHI - ongoing work to relocate the Metropolitan Lounge (to be followed by work to convert the current Metropolitan Lounge to additional seating for the "regular" waiting lounge area). Probably additional work beyond that that I have forgotten.

Where will the new ML be? Will it have access to the tracks as the current one has?

 

[Bob Dylan]

CHI - ongoing work to relocate the Metropolitan Lounge (to be followed by work to convert the current Metropolitan Lounge to additional seating for the "regular" waiting lounge area). Probably additional work beyond that that I have forgotten.

Where will the new ML be? Will it have access to the tracks as the current one has?

Tom; FWIW, Based on posts on this Forum in a previous thread, and what I was told by workers in Union Station when I was in CHI last week, the Amtrak Ticket Counters, Customer Services and Info Desk will be moved to the Hall between the Great Hall and the present Ticket Counter Area! The Metro Lounge will move to the Room that was a Gallery in the Great Hall where the Temporary Lounge was located a few years ago while the cuurrent Lounge was being rennovated! Supposedly the current Metro Lounge will become another Coach Waiting Area and its unsure whether the Baggage Area will be moved or enlarged when the Ticket Counters etc. are moved??

And while its not a "Major" Station, Union Station in New Orleans has new Bathrooms and the Magnolia Room (there's no Magnolias there! :lol: )is under going a remodeling! My understanding is that the current Station in Miami is also undergoing similar remodeling with an eventual (in our Lifetime??) move to the new Intermodel Station @ the Miami Airport?? :unsure:

 

[DingDong]

New Haven.

 

[Eric S]

CHI - ongoing work to relocate the Metropolitan Lounge (to be followed by work to convert the current Metropolitan Lounge to additional seating for the "regular" waiting lounge area). Probably additional work beyond that that I have forgotten.

Where will the new ML be? Will it have access to the tracks as the current one has?

The new Metropolitan Lounge will be located south of the hallway between the Great Hall and the concourse (ticketing/baggage/waiting) area. I don't see how it would have any separate access to tracks (like the "back door" on the current location). I imagine the departure track would be announced in the ML and ML personnel would lead passengers to the track, bypassing the waiting lounge by walking straight to the track (as if boarding a Metra train).

If you are interested, the website www.unionstationmp.com has additional future plans (largely unfunded at this point) for Chicago Union Station.

 

[MSP_Train_Hopper]

Don't forget the Saint Paul Union Depot.

 

[Blackwolf]

SAC, though the construction is not yet really impacting passenger movement. The work is both out front and out back; new access roads are being built for the parking lot, and of course there is the track relocation project which is behind schedule and was supposed to be finished already. The last I heard, sometime in July will be when operations move from the historical platforms to the new ones.

Very interesting about CHI. I really liked the back door to the Metro Lounge!

 

[Shawn Ryu]

Moynihan project is set to start for NYP.

Much needed might I add.

 

[The Davy Crockett]

Is SFA still under construction?

I don't know. I rode past on #91 this last March and it looked finished from that perspective, but I couldn't tell for sure.

 

[The Davy Crockett]

CHI - ongoing work to relocate the Metropolitan Lounge (to be followed by work to convert the current Metropolitan Lounge to additional seating for the "regular" waiting lounge area). Probably additional work beyond that that I have forgotten.

Where will the new ML be? Will it have access to the tracks as the current one has?

The new Metropolitan Lounge will be located south of the hallway between the Great Hall and the concourse (ticketing/baggage/waiting) area. I don't see how it would have any separate access to tracks (like the "back door" on the current location). I imagine the departure track would be announced in the ML and ML personnel would lead passengers to the track, bypassing the waiting lounge by walking straight to the track (as if boarding a Metra train).

If you are interested, the website www.unionstationmp.com has additional future plans (largely unfunded at this point) for Chicago Union Station.

Thanks! Didn't know a thing about it. I've not looked at the link yet, but I hope they don't do away with the 'bag checker' position in the new ML as a cost cutting measure. That would suck.

I've boarded sleepers from the ML before where we went out the 'back door' and then back into the 'south' hall before going out the gate. I imagine the new ML might have direct access to the hall by the south side tracks, but it could be a circuitous trip to #7!

 

[The Davy Crockett]

SAC, though the construction is not yet really impacting passenger movement. The work is both out front and out back; new access roads are being built for the parking lot, and of course there is the track relocation project which is behind schedule and was supposed to be finished already. The last I heard, sometime in July will be when operations move from the historical platforms to the new ones.

Very interesting about CHI. I really liked the back door to the Metro Lounge!

Thats right. I forgot SAC! I heard someone complaining that the new layout for SAC is going to be less conveinent for Amtrak pax, with a farther walk between the station and the platforms, or some such, but I haven't seen the plans.

 

[stntylr]

Construction on the new platform in Hope, Arkansas is scheduled to be finished in June. Okay, I know it's not a major station now but I'm sure it will be once it opens.

 

[jis]

Missing from this list so far are Albany-Renssalaer and Schenectady. The former will get a fourth platform track which is fully funded, and work will begin spring 1013. The latter will get a new station building and platforms and some track realignment and that is also mostly funded, work to begin spring 2013.

The more visible construction at New York Penn Station starting next year will be the I-Ladder and A-interlocking rebuilding work, which is funded as part of the $450 million High Speed grant, and is thus technically part of the Gateway Project and has nothing to do with Moynihan. The Moynihan Phase 1 work which is funded, is mostly at the West End Concourse, which is wholly underground and will be mostly invisible to casual observers until it is ready to go into service. Moynihan Phase 2, which results in the construction of the Amtrak Concourse in the courtyard of what is the Farley Post Office Building is currently not funded, and no one really knows when it will be funded from where, or when it will be completed.

Here is an article describing the latest in the ups and downs of Moynihan Station, the gist of which is that the overall size of Phase 1 work is going to be cut back to stay within budget. Incidentally, the ceremonial first shovel for this work was done in 2010.

The Moynihan Phase 1 work plan is shown in this diagram.

Here are some artist's renderings of Moynihan Phase 1 expected results:

Entrance on 8th Ave under the Post Office building:

Fully developed underground West End Concourse:

 

[Eric S]

I've boarded sleepers from the ML before where we went out the 'back door' and then back into the 'south' hall before going out the gate. I imagine the new ML might have direct access to the hall by the south side tracks, but it could be a circuitous trip to #7!

I'm not sure it will be that much farther to 7 on the north than it will be to the various trains on the south. Walk out the front of the ML, turn right, then either turn left for 7/27 or right for 3/5/21/30/48/50/59/421/448.

 

[Exiled in Express]

Lancaster, PA renovations continue at a glacial pace. Not a major connecting station but it does have a respectable passenger count.

 

[afigg]

The recent threads asking how long until the Denver station is done, and the update on Seattle's King St. Station got me thinking about how many of the 'larger' Amtrak stations are currently being worked on. This is what I can think of offhand:

DEN, SEA, PDX (still?), LAX, WAS, NOL, MIA, NYP (has the ceremonial first shovel been shown off?), MSP,

Is the Raleigh station in North Carolina getting work?

What am I missing?

jis just covered the upgrades for NYP. The ceremonial first shovel was long before the contracts were even put out to bid or awarded, although I don't know how much actual digging of dirt the Moynihan Phase 1 project will involve. Perhaps they should have had ceremonial first jackhammer and concrete pour?

Raleigh NC is in the planning stages for a new intermodal station complex with a high level platform. With the rapid growth in passengers at the station, there is pressure to move ahead on the new station.

The new station in Norfolk, VA is under construction at the Harbor Park location. Once it gets to three trains a day, it should be a pretty active station.

Depending on how you define major, Springfield MA is slated to restore the old station as a new intermodal center with an adjacent bus terminal. The station is funded or mostly funded, so it should move ahead in the next year or two.

There are a number of stations around the US that received HSIPR or TIGER grants for upgrades or to build a new intermodal station. The push to construct intermodal stations is going to significantly benefit Amtrak over time. Too often, the downtown station was torn down or re-purposed and Amtrak had to built a bare bones station on the outskirts of town with limited or no transit options. The intermodal stations put Amtrak, the intercity buses, local bus connections in one place. If the city is large enough, the restored/new station will provide access to the local light rail or streetcar transit system. By combining the transit systems back into 1 hub, we should also see car rental facilities or kiosks start showing up at the busier stations.

Of course, the intermodal stations are getting back to what many of the smaller to medium sized cities had at one time that was thrown away in the 1950s and 60s, a downtown train station with trolleys or streetcars providing transit access all over the city.

 

[jis]

The recent threads asking how long until the Denver station is done, and the update on Seattle's King St. Station got me thinking about how many of the 'larger' Amtrak stations are currently being worked on. This is what I can think of offhand:

DEN, SEA, PDX (still?), LAX, WAS, NOL, MIA, NYP (has the ceremonial first shovel been shown off?), MSP,

Is the Raleigh station in North Carolina getting work?

What am I missing?

In addition to the few I mentioned in my previous post here, I believe Charlotte station is slated to move to a new location closer to downtown.

Rochester NY station is slated to be rebuilt at its present location as of last known reports on that matter. Other locations have been under consideration but have so far been rejected. Syracuse NY is slated to get an additional track. Niagara Falls NY is getting a brand new station adjacent to the old Custom House, complete with new C&I facilities, by the Whirlpool Bridge.

And of course Montreal QC is slated to get an International Platform with C&I facilities.

 

[Eric S]

Another station slated to undergo future renovation/reconstruction is MKE. The trainshed/platform area will have significant work performed on it at some point (this project has been delayed time and time again so it is hard to say just when it will get underway).

 

[George Harris]

In addition to the few I mentioned in my previous post here, I believe Charlotte station is slated to move to a new location closer to downtown.

There has been a plan for several years to move the station downtown to the original Southern Railway station site set up as an intermodal station with a track or two for commuter trains. Information can be found on bytrain.org but it has not been updated for several years. I think the estimate is around $100 million.

 

[oldtimer]

Just to clarify the CUS improvements:

1. The Metro lounge will be located directly across from the "current Metro Deli" (which will be moved or eliminated). It will be a two story lounge with access from the main floor and Canal Street at street level. It will have an elevator and a staircase.
2. The current Metro lounge and main passenger restrooms will be eliminate and this whole area will be a waiting area.
3. The ticket offices are to be relocated to the east side (river side) of the Great Hall.
4. The area across from the current ticket office will be converted into two large restroom facilities.

 

[Sactobob]

Just to clarify the CUS improvements:

1. The Metro lounge will be located directly across from the "current Metro Deli" (which will be moved or eliminated). It will be a two story lounge with access from the main floor and Canal Street at street level. It will have an elevator and a staircase.
2. The current Metro lounge and main passenger restrooms will be eliminate and this whole area will be a waiting area.
3. The ticket offices are to be relocated to the east side (river side) of the Great Hall.
4. The area across from the current ticket office will be converted into two large restroom facilities.

While having a new and larger Metopolitan Lounge and a larger coach class waiting area will be welcome improvements, one aspect of the new Metopolitan Lounge location concerns me. Pedestrian traffic from the lounge to boarding south side trains will conflict directly with the hordes of commuters coming down the escalators to board BNSF route Metra trains during evening rush hour. Grandma and her luggage are sure to get trampled.

 

[Mike from Crete]

Just to clarify the CUS improvements:

1. The Metro lounge will be located directly across from the "current Metro Deli" (which will be moved or eliminated). It will be a two story lounge with access from the main floor and Canal Street at street level. It will have an elevator and a staircase.
2. The current Metro lounge and main passenger restrooms will be eliminate and this whole area will be a waiting area.
3. The ticket offices are to be relocated to the east side (river side) of the Great Hall.
4. The area across from the current ticket office will be converted into two large restroom facilities.

While having a new and larger Metopolitan Lounge and a larger coach class waiting area will be welcome improvements, one aspect of the new Metopolitan Lounge location concerns me. Pedestrian traffic from the lounge to boarding south side trains will conflict directly with the hordes of commuters coming down the escalators to board BNSF route Metra trains during evening rush hour. Grandma and her luggage are sure to get trampled.

No doubt Grandma and her luggage will be riding in a golf cart from the lounge to trackside.

 

[Eric S]

While having a new and larger Metopolitan Lounge and a larger coach class waiting area will be welcome improvements, one aspect of the new Metopolitan Lounge location concerns me. Pedestrian traffic from the lounge to boarding south side trains will conflict directly with the hordes of commuters coming down the escalators to board BNSF route Metra trains during evening rush hour. Grandma and her luggage are sure to get trampled.

Obviously schedules can change, but let's look at the current schedules of sleeper-equiped trains that depart from the south side. Train 21/421 at 1:45pm, Train 5 at 2:00pm, Train 3 at 3:00pm, Train 50 at 5:45pm, Train 30 at 6:10pm, Train 59 at 8:00pm, and Train 48/448 at 9:30pm. Right now only Trains 30 & 50 are during or near evening rush hour, so most passengers will not be affected by this possible problem. Secondly, if passengers are walked past the current ticket counters, then south to the tracks (rather than past the baggage claim area and next to Tracks 2-4-6-8) they will bypass most of the heavy commuter traffic coming down the escalators/stairs from near the Jackson Blvd. doors.