by Greg Moore
Several thoughts:
As noted, the Albany-Rensselaer station is owned and operated by the local transit authority (CDTA) and as such, should be very easy to integrate into the local bus service.
But it's not. The bus stops at the street, not in front the station, which I think (and have heard from others) is inconvenient and also not a very obvious connection.
That said, there are bus bays in the basement of the station. I believe one is now being used for bus service to Bennington VT. These aren't useful for commuter busses as they require backing in, but are useful for longer-distance busses (such as the current use).
So, immediately, Amtrak/CDTA could very easily add both local bus service simply by moving the stop to the front of the station where it's more obvious and requires less walking. They could add some long-distance busses using the existing bays.
As for the aforementioned "cable-car" the talk was about a gondola/sky tram service from the station directly to Rockefeller Plaza. Honestly, I don't think any locals actually expected it to go any place.
The old Union station is not accessible for multiple reasons, including that it would require a backing move which would slow everything down (the Livingston Avenue Bridge (LAB) is north of Union Station, the old Maiden Laine Bridge was how NYC provided service to Union Station). The LAB did have a pedestrian portion that's been long closed.
There is work afoot to replace the LAB with a new bridge that would include a pedestrian path. I can't wait for it to open.
Now that said, the solution I would prefer is light rail (and I really need to draw a map someday)..
Basically it would stop at the north end of the station (or perhaps on the east side in the parking lot) and continue north across Herrick Street and then descend to ground level and near the current wye, split and one leg cross the new LAB into Albany proper. The 2nd would run parallel to the existing freight tracks going north to South Troy.
There would be a station (with a tall elevator) at the RPI tech park and then continue north into downtown Troy (street running). If one were ambitious it would then cross the Green Island Bridge and serve Watervliet and possibly Waterford).
This would tie in Troy and Albany and allow downtown access to the station without requiring the use of a car.
And as noted I'd add commuter service from the south (i.e. Hudson) which would run counter to Amtrak's current traffic (mostly southbound in the morning, northbound in the evening) and East to Chatham and then of course North to Saratoga Springs.
Honestly, Albany's at a great cross-roads for a lot of rail-based growth if it wanted to be!
As noted, the Albany-Rensselaer station is owned and operated by the local transit authority (CDTA) and as such, should be very easy to integrate into the local bus service.
But it's not. The bus stops at the street, not in front the station, which I think (and have heard from others) is inconvenient and also not a very obvious connection.
That said, there are bus bays in the basement of the station. I believe one is now being used for bus service to Bennington VT. These aren't useful for commuter busses as they require backing in, but are useful for longer-distance busses (such as the current use).
So, immediately, Amtrak/CDTA could very easily add both local bus service simply by moving the stop to the front of the station where it's more obvious and requires less walking. They could add some long-distance busses using the existing bays.
As for the aforementioned "cable-car" the talk was about a gondola/sky tram service from the station directly to Rockefeller Plaza. Honestly, I don't think any locals actually expected it to go any place.
The old Union station is not accessible for multiple reasons, including that it would require a backing move which would slow everything down (the Livingston Avenue Bridge (LAB) is north of Union Station, the old Maiden Laine Bridge was how NYC provided service to Union Station). The LAB did have a pedestrian portion that's been long closed.
There is work afoot to replace the LAB with a new bridge that would include a pedestrian path. I can't wait for it to open.
Now that said, the solution I would prefer is light rail (and I really need to draw a map someday)..
Basically it would stop at the north end of the station (or perhaps on the east side in the parking lot) and continue north across Herrick Street and then descend to ground level and near the current wye, split and one leg cross the new LAB into Albany proper. The 2nd would run parallel to the existing freight tracks going north to South Troy.
There would be a station (with a tall elevator) at the RPI tech park and then continue north into downtown Troy (street running). If one were ambitious it would then cross the Green Island Bridge and serve Watervliet and possibly Waterford).
This would tie in Troy and Albany and allow downtown access to the station without requiring the use of a car.
And as noted I'd add commuter service from the south (i.e. Hudson) which would run counter to Amtrak's current traffic (mostly southbound in the morning, northbound in the evening) and East to Chatham and then of course North to Saratoga Springs.
Honestly, Albany's at a great cross-roads for a lot of rail-based growth if it wanted to be!
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