Thoughts on location for new Atlanta station

[TWA904]

CSX appears to be shutting down the Hulsey Yard in Atlanta. Hulsey is on Decatur Street SE, just east of the Oakland Cemetery. It is to the east of I 75/85 and north of I 20. Should be plenty of space to have multiple platforms and for parking lay over equipment. Only thing I'm not sure of is getting the Crescent to that location from the east and then back to its route to BHM.

 

[Qapla]

That looks like a good location for Amtrak ... but the cost may make it unrealistic with the current sentiment about the Fed and Amtrak.

Since the tracks exist and are in use by CSX there should be ways to reroute Amtrak trains to that location ... but, just like the Govt and the money - CSX may not be willing to negotiate to allow Amtrak to use the needed tracks.

 

[Palmland]

If CSX leaves Halsey, that would certainly free up some space for a station. But, if my memory is correct (big if) Hulsey is east of Atlanta and the NS which would require a reverse move of some sort to continue on to Birmingham.

Another possibility might be the former GM assembly plant (now mostly vacant land) in Doraville adjacent to the ‘ Doraville Transit Stop’ (see Google) and on the NS who still has a yard there with yard office south a couple miles in Chamblee (also a Marta stop). That area is just off I-285 that circles Atlanta. If in Chamblee check out the Frosty Caboose. Great ice cream and even better train watching.

 

[west point]

Due to the lay out of rail lines in Atlanta there is not a location in ATL that would serve all needs for comprehensive rail routes. Hulsey yard at one time might as trains on NS from CLT could have used the belt line but that route is long gone. Downtown near the locations of Union station and Terminal station is best compromise but would need a balloon track for trains from BHM, CHA, Knoxville, Athens, CLT would need to go back towards one of those cities.

 

[GaSteve]

Another possibility might be the former GM assembly plant (now mostly vacant land) in Doraville adjacent to the ‘ Doraville Transit Stop’ (see Google) and on the NS who still has a yard there with yard office south a couple miles in Chamblee (also a Marta stop). That area is just off I-285 that circles Atlanta. If in Chamblee check out the Frosty Caboose. Great ice cream and even better train watching.

That location has been discussed and would be the best among options, but again, who is going to foot the bill?

 

[crescent-zephyr]

Why a balloon track? Could always do a wye into the station or do a push pull operation.

There are so many if’s connected to that happening though....

 

[Seaboard92]

Would something similar to Richmond broad Street Station work. The entire station was built on a loop.

 

[me_little_me]

More talk about a new Atlanta station. Not in my lifetime. Probably not in my son's. Still only a slight possibility in my 8 y/o grandson's.

 

[neroden]

Atlanta refuses to fund it. Georgia refuses to fund it. So it won't happen.

 

[Qapla]

Perhaps a good idea for Atlanta would be to build a central "Intermodal" station and bring all the various passenger transit to a single location.

 

[dogbert617]

Atlanta refuses to fund it. Georgia refuses to fund it. So it won't happen.

I don't know so much, if I'd say it's impossible. Birmingham managed to build a new modern station for the Crescent, and IIRC Greyhound and other public transit also stop there. So I hold hope, though it'll probably be a little while, that one day Atlanta may have a better station. Or at least a 2nd station, a la how Richmond has 2 stations (Staples Mill Rd and Main St, or is the latter Broad St?), would help things for Atlanta boarding and disembarking passengers.

If CSX leaves Halsey, that would certainly free up some space for a station. But, if my memory is correct (big if) Hulsey is east of Atlanta and the NS which would require a reverse move of some sort to continue on to Birmingham.

Another possibility might be the former GM assembly plant (now mostly vacant land) in Doraville adjacent to the ‘ Doraville Transit Stop’ (see Google) and on the NS who still has a yard there with yard office south a couple miles in Chamblee (also a Marta stop). That area is just off I-285 that circles Atlanta. If in Chamblee check out the Frosty Caboose. Great ice cream and even better train watching.

Doraville may be interesting, for either a new station site or a 2nd one. If the former tracks over the Belt Line bike trail (as of today) hadn't been removed, maybe it would've been possible to consider the area by Hulsey Yard for a new train station?

 

[AGM.12]

This may be hoping too much, but Amtrak could take a page from the Brightline playbook and buy up the former GM car plant and re-develop it with office and condos and other commercial parcels in addition to the station.

 

[neroden]

One day, perhaps. Maybe after Stacey Abrams becomes Governor of Georgia. But not soon. I'm not surprised that Georgia has been unsupportive, but the City of Atlanta has been consistently unsupportive too. Worse, it has kept selling off or repurposing land which would be used for a reasonable station, rather than attempting to preserve it.

 

[jis]

This may be hoping too much, but Amtrak could take a page from the Brightline playbook and buy up the former GM car plant and re-develop it with office and condos and other commercial parcels in addition to the station.

Except that Brightline did not buy anything. It was given the FEC property by its owner which also owns Brightline.

 

[dgvrengineer]

There is a belt line of sorts that leaves the CSX line just east of Hulsey. It crosses the NS line just north of the current Amtrak station. A connection would have to be built, but otherwise the track is there. But as Neroden said, neither the state of Georgia or city of Atlanta are interested in funding any rail projects and Amtrak doesn't have the money or desire either.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

Amtrak could take a page from the Brightline playbook and buy up the former GM car plant and re-develop it with office and condos and other commercial parcels in addition to the station.

Amtrak's charter does not include purchasing and developing adjacent commercial properly for the purpose of collecting revenue or increasing traffic. The Brightline project may at first appear to be a turnkey solution for improving passenger rail nationwide, but replicating that progress outside of Florida would likely require decades of deliberate planning and dependable funding, something our banana republic government seems incapable of managing.

 

[Metra Electric Rider]

It's not just that, the federal (or any other American) government, as I've understood, can't function as a "developer" in the sense of doing something "for-profit." My understanding is that it's been policy due to objections by developers during early slum clearance and public housing (non low income) development. I would have to dig up the reference and I may be wrong, but it would be a hard fight for a unit of government to act directly as a developer.

 

[TWA904]

Amtrak's charter does not include purchasing and developing adjacent commercial properly for the purpose of collecting revenue or increasing traffic. The Brightline project may at first appear to be a turnkey solution for improving passenger rail nationwide, but replicating that progress outside of Florida would likely require decades of deliberate planning and dependable funding, something our banana republic government seems incapable of managing.

What about Amtrak's Moynihan Train Hall in NYC. Isn't that a joint venture between Amtrak, The New York Empire State Development Corp. and the Moynihan Station Development Corp. Isn't the NY Empire State Development Corp. a part of NY state government.

 

[neroden]

If the Georgia state government or the Atlanta city government wanted to build a new station, Amtrak would go in on it as a partnership, just as Amtrak did in NYC (and many other places -- Springfield, MA, Creston, IA, Northampton, MA, and dozens of others come to mind off the top of my head).

But neither the Georgia state government nor the Atlanta city government has shown any interest in doing so. And that's the bottom line here. Nothing will happen without state or local government support.

 

[toddinde]

Just a couple of friendly points to make. When Amtrak began, we were a country of 170 million. We’re soon going to be pushing 400 million. Our transportation systems are maxed out. Atlanta is a traffic nightmare. My point is that times are changing really fast. Freight railroads carry about 17% of the nation’s freight, about the same as waterways. They seem hellbent to carry less and less. Passenger will take over more rail infrastructure ... if we’re capable of doing anything intelligent anymore. As the country grows and urbanizes further, passenger rail is the only logical choice. Hyperloop? That’s a delusional pipe dream, no pun intended. The politics in Georgia are changing too. The ranch house in the burbs with two cars is increasingly out of reach, and isn’t sustainable. The blue collar union jobs that sustained that are gone. Millennials have student loan debt and have different priorities. Self driving cars get stuck in traffic along with everyone else. Analyzing things based on the past isn’t going to accurately predict the future. On a different note, we have a completely irrational fear of backing moves. In Europe, many stations are stub ended. It’s not hard. So, yes. A station should be built in downtown Atlanta near the terminal station site. It may necessitate a backing move. It will take political will and community vision, but times are changing, and the old paradigms are irrelevant and dying out. Don’t bank on not seeing it in your lifetime unless you’re not buying green bananas anymore.

 

[neroden]

From your lips to the ears of Georgia's elected officials.