Rensselaer Rail Station is a train station in Rensselaer, New York, located 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from downtown Albany across the Hudson River. As of 2010 it was Amtrak's ninth-busiest station, as well as the busiest to serve a metro area with a population smaller than 2 million. It is served by Amtrak's Empire Corridor routes, including the Lake Shore Limited, whose Boston and New York branches diverge at the station.
In order to distinguish this station from the Rensselaer station in Indiana, it is branded for Amtrak services as Albany-Rensselaer.
Video Albany-Rensselaer station
History
Operated by the Capital District Transportation Authority (CDTA), the current structure was completed in September 2002 and opened on the 22nd of that month. It features a Coffee Beanery coffeeshop, a newsstand, and a post office. It was designed by the Schenectady architecture firm Stracher-Roth Gilmore and the New York firm Vollmer Associates, with Ryan-Biggs of Troy providing structural engineering, Sage/Engineering Associates providing MEP engineering services, Erdman Anthony of Troy providing facilities engineering, and constructed by U. W. Marx/Bovis joint venture.
The intermodal station replaced two previous terminal buildings, one built in 1968 and the other in 1980. The 1968 building was torn down in order to expand the station's parking facility. Before 1968, trains stopped at Union Station in Albany. That building, located on Broadway, now houses the northeast headquarters of Bank of America (via predecessors Fleet Bank and Norstar Bank). The New York Central Railroad had plans to leave Albany, in part because Interstate 787 needed the space occupied by a rail yard, but the move took place under Penn Central's watch.
The current station was built with three tracks (a fourth was planned, but eliminated due to cost) leaving the station with fewer than preferable tracks. In October 2008, it was announced that a fourth track would be built after the two previous terminal buildings were demolished; a contract for that work was assigned at the same time. Design work was proceeding on the fourth track as of February 2010, but actual construction was placed on hold pending resolution of funding issues and demolition of the two terminal buildings to the north. On October 27, 2010, demolition of the two other buildings began. In a December 4, 2012 press release, Amtrak indicated that installation of the fourth track would begin in 2013, and the project was completed in March 2016.
Maps Albany-Rensselaer station
Station layout
The station's two high-level island platforms are connected to the main building by an aerial walkway. Each 605-foot (184 m) platform can accommodate up to 7 Amfleet cars, not including an engine.
Transportation services
Amtrak
With the exception of the Boston branch of the Lake Shore Limited, all trains have southbound service to Penn Station in New York City.
- Adirondack to Montreal
- Empire Service: all trains to New York (via Hudson, Rhinecliff, Poughkeepsie, Croton-on-Hudson, Yonkers); some westbound to Buffalo and Niagara Falls.
- Ethan Allen Express to Rutland, Vermont
- Lake Shore Limited to Syracuse, Rochester, Buffalo, Cleveland, Toledo, and Chicago
- New York Branch (Train 48/49): Poughkeepsie, Croton-on-Hudson, New York (Penn Station)
- Boston Branch (Train 448/449): Pittsfield, Springfield, Worcester, Framingham, Boston (Back Bay), Boston (South Station)
- Maple Leaf to Toronto
Bus
The intercity Megabus operates regular service to New York City and Ridgewood, N.J. Temporary Amtrak Thruway Motorcoach services due to track service work also serve the station from its bus bays.
Two bus routes operated by the Capital District Transportation Authority, the local public transportation agency, serve the station:
- 114-Madison/Washington: Every 30 minutes during the day, and every hour on nights and weekends.
- 214-Rensselaer/Third Street-Amtrak: Every 30 minutes during rush hours, every 40 minutes during the day and about every hour on nights and weekends.
References
External links
- Amtrak - Stations - Albany-Rensselaer Station
- CDTA station page for Rensselaer
- Albany-Rensselaer Amtrak Station (USA Rail Guide -- Train Web)
- Albany-Rensselaer Amtrak Station (The SubwayNut)
- Albany-Rensselaer on Great American Stations
Source of article : Wikipedia
0 Comments