Staunton station

Staunton
Location 1 Middlebrook Avenue
Staunton, VA
Coordinates 38°8′51″N 79°4′19.2″W / 38.14750°N 79.072000°W / 38.14750; -79.072000Coordinates: 38°8′51″N 79°4′19.2″W / 38.14750°N 79.072000°W / 38.14750; -79.072000
Line(s)
  Cardinal
Platforms 1 side platform
Tracks 1
Connections Staunton Trolley (Green Line)
Other information
Station code STA
Traffic
Passengers (FY2014) 6,823 annually[1] Decrease 11.77% (Amtrak)
Services
Preceding station   Amtrak   Following station
toward Chicago
Cardinal

Staunton is an Amtrak train station located at 1 Middlebrook Avenue in Staunton, Virginia. The station is downtown in the Wharf Area Historic District,[2] and serves Amtrak's Cardinal line, which runs from New York to Chicago.

The Staunton station has restrooms and waiting benches, but no ticket office. It serves a large area of the Shenandoah Valley, as Staunton no longer has intercity bus service. The closest Greyhound/Trailways station is 30 miles away.[3])

Next to the station are restaurants and art studios, as well as other points of interest. For pedestrians, the historic Sears Hill Bridge and paved trail lead to the Sears Hill neighborhood and the Sears House in Woodrow Wilson Park. In 2010 the city closed the steel truss pedestrian bridge and approved its temporary removal for restoration.[4][5] Next to the station is a Chessie System caboose.[6][7]

The site of the station has been a railroad depot since 1854:

The present railroad station is the third one on this site. The first station was destroyed by [Union] General Hunter's troops in June of 1864. A runaway train at the turn-of-the-century [in 1890[8]] destroyed the second station.
— Staunton in the Civil War[9]

The current station facility is the former telegraph tower from when the Staunton station functioned as a full passenger and freight railroad depot. While the platform still functions as the railroad platform for loading and unloading passengers, the former station buildings are now occupied by restaurants.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Amtrak Fact Sheet, FY2014, Commonwealth of Virginia" (PDF). Amtrak Government Affairs. November 2014. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
  2. ↑ http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/travel/VAmainstreet/wha.htm
  3. ↑ "Getting Around and to Staunton". City of Staunton. Archived from the original on 2008-04-14. Retrieved 2008-04-13.
  4. ↑ http://www.readthehook.com/blog/index.php/2010/07/29/landmark-saved-bridge-owner-staunton-partner-on-ped-bridge-fix/
  5. ↑ http://www.newsleader.com/article/20100728/NEWS01/7280330/Staunton-to-acquire-Sears-Hill-bridge
  6. ↑ "Caboose, Index W". Central California Rails. Retrieved 2008-06-12. See also linked photograph.
  7. ↑ Turner, Jack M. "Florida to Indianapolis and Return by Rail". TrainWeb. Retrieved 2008-06-12.
  8. ↑ "Wharf Area Historic District". National Park Service. Retrieved 2008-04-13.
  9. ↑ "Staunton in the Civil War". Retrieved 2008-04-13.

External links

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