"I coulda been a contenda stations!!

[Bob Dylan]

Thanks for the great response to the Best and Worst Amtrak Stations!I think we all learned from your feedback so I pose this

to the members and guests: IYO; Which rr Stations,currently used or not by Amtrak,should be refurbished/used by Amtrak as

a railroad station limited to those youve actually seen or been in??

IMHO My List:

1)Buffalo Central

2)ST. Paul

3)Tacoma Union

4)San Antonio Sunset

5)St. Louis Union(I know its a mall!)

**Honorable Mention: Seattle Union**

 

[amtrakwolverine]

well there's the Michigan central depot.

 

[AAARGH!]

Cleveland Terminal Tower.

It is also now a mall, but it has light rail service still (RTA).

 

[Guest]

Grand Central Terminal!!!

 

[goodnightjohnwayne]

Buffalo Central Terminal was built in a location that was unpopular and inconvenient even when it was new in the 1920s and has only gotten worse.

St. Louis has a brand new station that should be a model for any city.

Michigan Central Station was in fairly bad shape before Amtrak moved to the adjacent station over two decades ago.

 

[wrjensen]

Michigan Central Station was in fairly bad shape before Amtrak moved to the adjacent station over two decades ago.

It was in really bad shape 12 years ago and there is nothing in that part of town with no tiger stadium used anymore.

 

[Ispolkom]

Thanks for the great response to the Best and Worst Amtrak Stations!I think we all learned from your feedback so I pose thisto the members and guests: IYO; Which rr Stations,currently used or not by Amtrak,should be refurbished/used by Amtrak as

a railroad station limited to those youve actually seen or been in??

IMHO My List:

1)Buffalo Central

2)ST. Paul

3)Tacoma Union

4)San Antonio Sunset

5)St. Louis Union(I know its a mall!)

**Honorable Mention: Seattle Union**

I won't disagree about #2, and last year I walked through Seattle Union's great hall. It's really a spectacular room (much nicer than King Street Station in its present dilapidated state).

 

[ALC Rail Writer]

1. NHV

2. PGH

3. SEA

4. SAC

5. BUF

And that's enough of these threads for me. Toodly oodly!

 

[pebbleworm]

There are rumblings about moving the Fort Madison Iowa station back into the old Santa Fe depot, which would be nice. Passengers would be right downtown, next to the Mississippi and in the middle of a park rather than in an industrial building in the middle of a railyard.

Current station:

http://www.doe.mtu.edu/~ehgroth/website/Ca...hgoapr08033.jpg

Old station:

http://atsf.railfan.net/depots/ftmadison.html

Ha! Read my own link and the current Fort Madison station was actually built as a passenger stop by the Santa Fe. Pretty neat.

 

[The Metropolitan]

Richmond Broad Street comes to mind. I visited the Science Museum there in 1983 when I was 12 and even then it nagged me to no end how much it looked like it should be a train station. Then, I noticed a window pane which had peeling paint on it and looked out and got a view of the platforms still there.

I seem to recall going total Ape Sugar-Honey..... at that point. Not only did my young intuitions pay off, but I was seeing artifacts of the glory days! I remember nothing about the Museum experience but so much about the building!

Now if one can get TOTALLY ambitious as in Money to be no object, I'd say Grand Central New York, as in a through tunnel from the lower level that led over to the Hudson tubes. Yes, there would doubtless be any number of issues, some of which would/could make it all impossible, but after all, this is a fantasy topic. Talk about a so much grander entrance to the city! Needed, no, but nice yes.

I know there's something else I'm forgetting as well, but this is a start.

 

[DowneasterPassenger]

Transbay Terminal San Francisco -- the once and future station.

Soon to be converted back to a train terminal for high speed rail (we hope).

 

[Long Train Runnin']

1. NHV

New Haven? I admit I have no idea of the history of the New Haven Station, or if there was more then one, but I was impressed with the current station its pretty well done and compared to most places in the Amtrak system its a "grand station". Large well done old style main hall, the hallway to the tracks was a little off felt like you were walking between Amfleets but still a nice place.

 

[JSmith]

Buffalo Central Terminal was built in a location that was unpopular and inconvenient even when it was new in the 1920s and has only gotten worse.

It might be more accurate to state that the Buffalo area's rail infrastructure has always been inconvenient. Central Terminal was built where it was for the same reason the Depew station is where it is now - because the mainline bypasses downtown. In order to serve trains going to or from Cleveland and points west, the station has to be significantly east of downtown.

If linked to downtown and the airport by an extension to Buffalo's light rail system, I think Central Terminal would make a really great train station. Neither the Depew nor Exchange Street stations make much of a grand impression on arrivals to Buffalo.

 

[DET63]

Grand Central Terminal!!!

Old photo of the Terminal.

 

[DET63]

Buffalo Central Terminal was built in a location that was unpopular and inconvenient even when it was new in the 1920s and has only gotten worse.

Buffalo Central Terminal

Nice tower. It would be nicer if the clock were more prominent, as in Portland, Oregon's Union Station.

 

[nferr]

1. NHV

New Haven? I admit I have no idea of the history of the New Haven Station, or if there was more then one, but I was impressed with the current station its pretty well done and compared to most places in the Amtrak system its a "grand station". Large well done old style main hall, the hallway to the tracks was a little off felt like you were walking between Amfleets but still a nice place.

I agree. New haven was totally restored and refurbished not that long ago and is in great condition.

 

[Montanan]

Salt Lake City!!!!!!!

Horrible little Amtrak station, no sign of movement towards the new intermodal station ... and two absolutely spectacular historic railroad stations still intact just a few blocks away.

(Of course, neither one has tracks anymore ... but hey. Since we're dreaming ...)

 

[DET63]

1. NHV

New Haven? I admit I have no idea of the history of the New Haven Station, or if there was more then one, but I was impressed with the current station its pretty well done and compared to most places in the Amtrak system its a "grand station". Large well done old style main hall, the hallway to the tracks was a little off felt like you were walking between Amfleets but still a nice place.

I agree. New haven was totally restored and refurbished not that long ago and is in great condition.

Outside view of New Haven

 

[DET63]

Salt Lake City!!!!!!!
Horrible little Amtrak station, no sign of movement towards the new intermodal station ... and two absolutely spectacular historic railroad stations still intact just a few blocks away.

(Of course, neither one has tracks anymore ... but hey. Since we're dreaming ...)

Link to pic of old Union Pacific station.

Link to pic of old Rio Grande station. According to the caption under it, it's about 1/4 from the "Amshack" shown above.

 

[como]

Jefferson City, MO. The old station is one block from the current station, is in great shape and has a nice big parking lot. It is now used as a crew base for Union Pacific. Lots of passengers get on and off and Jeff City.

http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM4VJH

 

[jmbgeg]

Thanks for the great response to the Best and Worst Amtrak Stations!I think we all learned from your feedback so I pose thisto the members and guests: IYO; Which rr Stations,currently used or not by Amtrak,should be refurbished/used by Amtrak as

a railroad station limited to those youve actually seen or been in??

IMHO My List:

1)Buffalo Central

2)ST. Paul

3)Tacoma Union

4)San Antonio Sunset

5)St. Louis Union(I know its a mall!)

**Honorable Mention: Seattle Union**

I won't disagree about #2, and last year I walked through Seattle Union's great hall. It's really a spectacular room (much nicer than King Street Station in its present dilapidated state).

What is the deal with Seattle King Street Station? For years, upgrades have supposedly been underway but I see little progress. It is a busy multi-modal station and deserves the capital investment.

 

[jmbgeg]

Salt Lake City!!!!!!!
Horrible little Amtrak station, no sign of movement towards the new intermodal station ... and two absolutely spectacular historic railroad stations still intact just a few blocks away.

(Of course, neither one has tracks anymore ... but hey. Since we're dreaming ...)

Greyhound probably has nicer stations than Salt Lake City Amtrak.

 

[AlanB]

What is the deal with Seattle King Street Station? For years, upgrades have supposedly been underway but I see little progress. It is a busy multi-modal station and deserves the capital investment.

Actually King Street is only semi-multi-modal. While Sounder trains depart from the tracks of the station, one doesn't actually enter the station if one wishes to board a Sounder train. There is a seperate entrance for boarding Sounder trains that leads directly from the street. Only Amtrak passengers actually walk into the station building for boarding purposes.

 

[S Unger]

Boy do I agree with the refurbishment of the Pittsburgh Station (PGH). I took the Pennsylvanian to New York last Christmas. And stopped in Philadelphia. Though the track area in all stations look dirty and unkempt the Philadelphia station was such a pleasant surprise when I went up the stairs. That is when it became apparent to me that there is no good reason to return the Amtrak station entrance to the dome in Pittsburgh. The dome is such nice place for the people to arrive compared to the basement the station occupies today. I think I'm going to write to my Representatives to see if that can be changed, even if it is only for 4 trains a day.

 

[Bob Dylan]

Thanks for the great response to the Best and Worst Amtrak Stations!I think we all learned from your feedback so I pose thisto the members and guests: IYO; Which rr Stations,currently used or not by Amtrak,should be refurbished/used by Amtrak as

a railroad station limited to those youve actually seen or been in??

IMHO My List:

1)Buffalo Central

2)ST. Paul

3)Tacoma Union

4)San Antonio Sunset

5)St. Louis Union(I know its a mall!)

**Honorable Mention: Seattle Union**

I won't disagree about #2, and last year I walked through Seattle Union's great hall. It's really a spectacular room (much nicer than King Street Station in its present dilapidated state).

What is the deal with Seattle King Street Station? For years, upgrades have supposedly been underway but I see little progress. It is a busy multi-modal station and deserves the capital investment.

Thats why I mentioned the beautiful Union Station next door that Paul Allen bought and rebuilt?the Transit authority has offices there, why waste $$ trying to refurbish King Street when Union is so much better?The repairs seem to be dragging on forever in King Sttreet and its very hard toi get to/from,cabs have to make U-turns and busses load "under the tree" outside!I can see the potential but they need to finish it ASAP,its another coulda been a contender!