Castleton station (Vermont) explained

Castleton, VT
Style:Amtrak
Address:266 Main Street
Borough:Castleton, Vermont
Country:United States
Coordinates:43.6133°N -73.1714°W
Owned:Castleton Depot, LLC
Line:VRS Clarendon and Pittsford Railroad
Platform:1 side platform
Tracks:1
Connections: The Bus: Fair Haven-Rutland Connector
Parking:Yes
Accessible:Yes
Status:Unstaffed station with waiting room
Opened:1850 (R&W)
January 2, 2010 (Amtrak)[1]
Rebuilt:2005–2009
Other Services Header:Former services
Other Services Collapsible:yes
Mapframe:yes

Castleton station is an Amtrak intercity train station in Castleton, Vermont. Originally built by the Rutland and Whitehall Railroad in 1850, the depot is now privately owned, and is located across from the northern terminus of the Delaware and Hudson Rail Trail. Castleton replaced Fair Haven station on the Ethan Allen Express in January 2010. It serves nearby Castleton University and Lake Bomoseen.

The station has one short low-level wooden side platform to the east of the track.

History

The station building was constructed in 1850. Passenger service on the line between Whitehall and Rutland ended on June 24, 1934.[2] [3] In 1966, the Delaware and Hudson Railroad sold the station to the Jakubowski family.

The Ethan Allen Express began service between New York City and Rutland on December 2, 1996.[4] [5] An infill station was opened at Fair Haven in November 1997.[6]

Fair Haven is a small town with limited tourist activity; in FY 2007 the station served just 2,205 passengers.[7] In 2005, the Jakubowski family began renovating Castleton station. In January 2010, Fair Haven station was replaced with Castleton, 5miles to the east, which better serves Castleton University and Lake Bomoseen. Castleton station opened on January 2; Fair Haven remained in use until January 9.

Accessibility improvements at the station, including a new platform, took place in 2016–2018.[8] From March 2020 to July 19, 2021, all Amtrak service in Vermont was suspended in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, with the Ethan Allen Express truncated to Albany–Rensselaer station.[9] [10] [11]

Notes and References

  1. AMTRAK ETHAN ALLEN EXPRESS TO PROVIDE SERVICE AT RENOVATED CASTLETON, VERMONT DEPOT . 29 December 2009 . Amtrak.
  2. News: D. & H. To Suspend Passenger Trains To And From City . Rutland Daily Herald . May 26, 1934 . 1 . Newspapers.com.
  3. News: Plan New Bus Lines . The Enterprise and Vermonter . June 15, 1934 . 7 . Newspapers.com.
  4. In Amtrak History . Amtrak Ink . December 2013 . 18 . 11.
  5. News: Train Trip to Vermont Offers Some of the Fun . Barbara . Lloyd . . December 19, 1996 . 2010-08-14 .
  6. Web site: Amtrak Northeast Timetable: Fall/Winter 1997–98 . Amtrak . Museum of Railway Timetables . October 26, 1997.
  7. Web site: Amtrak Fact Sheet, FY2007, State of Vermont. Amtrak . January 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080625190341/http://www.amtrak.com/pdf/factsheets/VERMONT07.pdf . 25 June 2008.
  8. News: Amtrak station fixes wrapping up . Kate . Barcellos . Rutland Daily Herald . October 4, 2018 . A1, A5 . Newspapers.com.
  9. 2020-03-24 . Service Adjustments Due to Coronavirus. live . Amtrak . https://web.archive.org/web/20200325190328/https://www.amtrak.com/alert/nec-modified-schedule.html . 2020-03-25 . 2020-03-25.
  10. News: Vermont marking return of Amtrak service after COVID . 28 July 2021 . AP NEWS . 19 July 2021 . en.
  11. Web site: Amtrak and Vermont Agency of Transportation Celebrate Restoration of Vermont Trains With One Dollar Tickets, Half Off Summer Travel and Special Events . Amtrak Media Center . 28 July 2021 . 13 July 2021.