Upgrades are on track at Lancaster station

After a five-year wait, a $7 million project to upgrade Lancaster's train station is beginning to move down the track.

In late March, Lancaster County commissioners approved a $750,000 contract with Atlanta-based Cooper Carry Inc. to do exterior and interior design work as part of the improvement

Neumann and other observers said the renovated station could entice more people to travel by train and provide tourists with a better first impression of Lancaster.

"The improvements are way overdue," said Janis Beitzer, executive director of the Lancaster Downtown Investment District Authority. "I think it will be a great addition to what we have."

Located on the northern edge of the city, the Lancaster train station was built in 1929 for $1.5 million. The station served almost 261,000 passengers between Oct. 1, 2001, and Sept. 30, 2002, according to Amtrak. The station is one of the busiest in the state, Amtrak officials said.

A master study completed in February 1998 outlines the improvements to be made during the station upgrade. These improvements include making aesthetic enhancements to the station building, such as repainting walls and repairing floors and ceilings. Additional parking, a new air-conditioning system and space for a conference room or banquet facility are among the project's improvements.

"We want to make the station a destination in itself," Neumann said. "We want to make it more user-friendly."

Some improvements included in the study have already been made, Neumann said. These enhancements include new elevators that provide unrestricted access throughout the station and renovations to the station's restrooms to make them more accessible to people with disabilities.

Neumann said it has taken more time than expected for the upgrade to get under way because it took several years to gather the money necessary to fund the project. The project is being paid for through a combination of federal, state and municipal funds.

Cooper Carry, the designer for the train station project, also is designing the convention center and hotel proposed for downtown Lancaster. It is important to finish the station improvements before the center and hotel open because many convention-goers will take trains to the city, Neumann said. The center is scheduled to open in 2005.

"We want the station to be in better condition," he said.

The station improvement project also comes at a time when several enhancements are being planned along the route of Amtrak's Keystone Service, which runs 18 trains each weekday between Harrisburg and Philadelphia/New York City. These improvements include a new station at Harrisburg International Airport, renovation of the Elizabethtown station and a new station at Paradise, in eastern Lancaster County. Track improvements also are being made to allow high-speed rail service along the Keystone Corridor.

The station upgrade could attract more people to bus service, said James Lutz, executive director of the Red Rose Transit Authority. Lutz said the authority plans to increase its service to the station and to introduce a shuttle service between the station and downtown later this year.

"We think it will be a growing hub for transportation," Lutz said.

Beitzer agreed. The improved station and RRTA's shuttle service will draw more people to downtown attractions such as the proposed convention center and minor-league baseball stadium, she said.

But commuters at the Lancaster train station expressed mixed opinions about what effect the upgrade would have on passenger volume. Susan Shearer has commuted by train between Lancaster and Harrisburg for about four years. Shearer said she hoped the upgrade would attract more people to the train station.

"I certainly hope it does," said Shearer, assistant executive director of Preservation Pennsylvania, a Harrisburg-based historic preservation organization. "This is a beautiful station."

Nancy Ehrhart of Mount Joy was less optimistic. Ehrhart said Amtrak should put more effort into providing faster train service, marketing train service and making train travel more affordable for families. "I don't think it's the building that makes people decide to take the train," Ehrhart said.

Don Davis agreed. Davis sells coffee, bagels and other snack items from his Lancaster Coffee Express stand inside the station. "I'm not sure if it will bring in more people or not," Davis said of the renovation project. "I think things like the weather, the price of gas and the price of tickets have more of an effect."