Need information on departing Northbound from Toccoa, GA

[tiffany07]

Hey! We're taking the Amtrak from TCA to NYP in a few months. There's not a lot of info about the TCA station on the Amtrak site and I wasn't able to get a lot of info when I called an agent either. My main concern is parking. Can anyone confirm if I'm able to park at the station and leave the car there til I return 5 days later? It's an unmanned station so there will be nobody there to ask questions. Secondly, the train arrives on the day of our departure around 1 AM! Again, it's an unmanned station, lounge closed after 10pm, is it safe at this hour of night, especially if you can't park there and have to find someone willing to drop you off and wait at this ungodly hour? Thanks in advance for any and all info!

 

[joelkfla]

Tha Amtrak site says overnight parking is available.

Try calling these guys. Looks like they're located in the station house.

https://www.toccoagachamber.com/

 

[tricia]

I've done this many times. It's fine to leave a car at the station for several days. I've usually left a note under my windshield saying I'll be returning on Amtrak.

The station itself is very pleasant, with a small restroom and old wooden benches. However, the town now has the station locked up until an hour or two before train time, on an auto unlock system, with no caretaker presence. Last time I did this, a year ago, the station had a creepy vibe to me. I was fine sitting in my car but would have felt uncomfortable there alone without a vehicle.

The Chamber of Commerce isn't open anytime near Amtrak's awful calling times in Toccoa.

 

[tricia]

PS: The northbound Crescent at Toccoa is often late, sometimes hours late. You can look up the train's timeliness history at Toccoa here.

 

[dadonatrain]

Just one more idea: Years ago, when I lived outside Pittsburgh and rode the Capitol Ltd to Washington DC the right place for me to board was Connelsville. It’s just a bus shelter next to a bunch of tracks that are either part of or close to a freight yard. Not real luxurious at all. Deserted at times the train was due in either direction. So I bought a gizmo I could lock into position on my steering wheel before I locked up and left my car for a week. I’m not sure it wasn’t overkill but it bought me peace of mind.

 

[crescent-zephyr]

I’ve been through Toccoa and stopped by the station to watch some freight trains go by. It’s a nice station. I walked from the station and around the downtown area. It’s a nice old-fashioned downtown. I felt very safe but it was the middle of the day, not 1 AM.

 

[TinCan782]

Toccoa from #19 (near the station).
22 Oct 2019 at about 0630 hrs. (About 30 min late).

 

[tricia]

Toccoa from #19 (near the station).
22 Oct 2019 at about 0630 hrs. (About 30 min late).

That's not the station building, it's a gazebo a little ways north of the station, in a narrow park that runs alongside the platform and tracks.