Which Is Your Favorite Station

Advertise with us
shop deals on amazon
Shop deals on ebay
Amtrak Unlimited Discussion Forum

Help Support Amtrak Unlimited Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

Which is your favorite

  • New York Penn Station, NY

    Votes: 1 100.0%

  • Washington Union Station, DC

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Philadelphia 30th Street Station, PA

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Total voters
    1
Status
Not open for further replies.
Now why isn't anyone voting for New York's lovely Pennsylvania Station? ;)
 
I voted for 30th for sure. That station has it all in my opinion. WAS is fine, but doesn't have alot of charm. NYP is just sad... but it's very New York so it works, def. has an energy.

I agree that both Chicago and LA's Union Stations are very nice.
 
Green Maned Lion said:
I like it. It has charm.
Click to expand...
I voted for Penn Station too. Charm or no charm, since my primary interest is in rail operations and the complexity of operations at Penn Station is absolutely fascinating. Compared to it the other two come nowhere near in that aspect.
 
Know weve had this thread before but FWIW, CHI would be my first choice IF the Great Hall was used by Amtrak and the Metro Lounge was expanded! Of course my personal choice would be to implode NYP and use GCT for the West/North trains like in the old days, all that money put into a beautiful Commuter station while NYP looks like a

way station in some third world nation! LAX could also be made world class as others have said, the basics are sure there! Looks like NYP is coming on strong, proof that New Yawkers will put up with anything if its in Manhattan! :lol:
 
Last edited by a moderator:
jimhudson said:
Know weve had this thread before but FWIW, CHI would be my first choice IF the Great Hall was used by Amtrak and the Metro Lounge was expanded! Of course my personal choice would be to implode NYP and use GCT for the West/North trains like in the old days, all that money put into a beautiful Commuter station while NYP looks like away station in some third world nation! LAX could also be made world class as others have said, the basics are sure there! Looks like NYP is coming on strong, proof that New Yawkers will put up with anything if its in Manhattan! :lol:
Click to expand...

Metro North ran Amtrak out of Penn with all of their trains, so that ain't gunna happen. Plus what is there to implode at NYP? MSG :lol: (I vote for that)? Maybe someday the grand ole' Penn will come back, but currently I like(d) to explore the station and found old history below the bacement :huh: ! I've recently stopped due to not wanting to be arrested by those great Amtrak police officers :rolleyes: ! People who just get on and off trains at Penn don't notice the artifacts that lie in the depth of the station, and thats what I like so much about it. So I know people have their likings, and even though Penn isn't the nicest (although it could be if MSG and all that crap hadn't been built ontop of it), but its definately got some cool things about it which makes it a really interesting station.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
I like Washington Union Station, especially since I found Capitol City Brewey was next door (I had only been to the other location previously). I also like the bar in the center of the big hall. A great place to people watch and have some interesting conversations.

But Philly is my home station - and the only station I ever go to when I'm not even taking a train. I vastly prefer the quiet, clubby PHL Club Acela over WAS. And it has Bridgewater's - as I've mentioned elsewhere.
 
jis said:
jimhudson said:
NYP looks like a way station in some third world nation!
Click to expand...
You haven't ever seen a way station in the third world, have you? :p

Here is a picture of an example :)
Click to expand...
Actually I have, I was refering to the crowding, the gross bathrooms and the general dreariness of the place especially @ night! I have ridden trains all over Mexico and of course rural stations cant compare to major city terminals! Your link didnt work, Im very familiar with the pics from India etc. but really was using a little hyperbole to kid the New Yawkers about Manhattan, NYP does what it should, still I think its a disgrace as our major station in the Big Apple! :( NYP could be like GCT if theyd just do it (imploding MSG is not a bad idea!I do remember the old Penn Station, it was impressive!!!) ;)

I also really like KCY Union Station, its really a grand old place that was saved by dedicated folks who like trains, it could be so much more if Amtrak wanted to utilize this great building in better ways!
 
Last edited by a moderator:
I voted for Washington, but Philly is a close second for me. NYP is a distant third IMO.

Washington's two beautiful halls (great halls) really give it a sense of being large and uncongested. I love how they set up shops / stands / restaurants in these halls, especially the lounge in the middle of the larger hall. The "eat street" below has numerous choices at reasonable prices AND there are even more options upstairs by the gates. I guess my only complaint would be the lack of seating / standing room around the gates.

As for Philly, they also have many food choices at reasonable prices. The great hall is more grand than the other two stations (I'm not counting MSG as a grand hall ;) ). It also gives it a sense of being large and uncongested. I love the flip board in the middle and the employees are the best of the three stations. Also, there is significant seating / standing room near the gates, unlike the other two. SO, Philly is a really close second for me.

 

Don't get me started on NYP. I feel like a cow in a heard of cattle there.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
jimhudson said:
Actually I have, I was refering to the crowding, the gross bathrooms and the general dreariness of the place especially @ night! I have ridden trains all over Mexico and of course rural stations cant compare to major city terminals! Your link didnt work, Im very familiar with the pics from India etc. but really was using a little hyperbole to kid the New Yawkers about Manhattan, NYP does what it should, still I think its a disgrace as our major station in the Big Apple! :( NYP could be like GCT if theyd just do it (imploding MSG is not a bad idea!I do remember the old Penn Station, it was impressive!!!) ;)
Click to expand...
Oh cool! I was just being a pain in the butt :)

So if some large X amount of dollars become available would one want to spend it on building a cool edifice at NYP or actually improve rail service? At present it looks like at least a section of the decision makers are heading in the direction of spending billions of dollars in massaging the old post office building into a rail head house which will be less convenient for a large proportion of those that use NYP. I suppose it will possibly satisfy those of us who have been complaining about what a hell hole NYP is, but then again very few of us are among those who use NYP regularly and who would rather be closer to the subways that they need to take than have a fancy head house. The cost estimate of imploding MSG and doing something else turned out to be so exorbitant that no one even wanted to touch it. So while it would be really nice to clean up the mess at NYP above ground and make it into a grand edifice again, it seems unlikely that that will come to pass, except of course for the Moynihan Concourse.

You win some and you lose some.
 
Well I agree about not putting the money into "curb appeal" but MSG is really a joke! (what a dump! as Betty Davis would say!) Perhaps the new place will be nicer, since I dont use the subways on a regular basis its not that urgent tto me but Ill admit I really liked the subway access in WAS when I lived and worked there.

Since there is limited money even in Washington Ill vote for building new cars/hiring new OBS, fixing tracks (the UP really needs to get on this one, think Warren Buffet will have BNSF stay on track, they are a pretty good RR!)and adding routes and more frequent service! I know NY has high taxes but youd think if folks sit still for billion dollar stadiums (how bout them Yankees, best team money can buy! LOL)and Taj Mahal condos (Donald Trump here!) theyd not mind a really nice Station for Amtrak to go with the historic and beautiful GCT thats just for commuters and tourists!!!

Im not familiar with the laws and practices in re homeless folks hanging out in the bathrooms and sleeping in the station,

but for sure better signage and directions could be provided, perhaps even more employees available all over the place to help out folks since it can be confusing for sure! In my experience theres more cops/security hanging out doing not a whole lot than actual workers available to help pax!
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Of the 3, I've only been in NY Penn and that was several years ago and only to take the LIRR a few times. Nonetheless, I found the station to be efficient in getting pax in and out and on their way. I was amazed how much of a morgue the place is on New Year's morning.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Latest posts

Back
Top