Schenectady Station to Open in Fall

The New York State Department of Transportation expects to open the new Amtrak station in Schenectady in a few months.

In a project update, NYSDOT said the station front is starting to resemble the architect drawings and that steel is going in on the platform.

“They’re working on the head house now, which is the part of the station you encounter when you come off the train, the entryway into the station,” said NYSDOT spokesman Bryan Viggian.

“We’re pleased with the progress. It’s moving on time and on schedule.

The facility replaces a 1970s era station build by Amtrak was razed last summer. “It had reached its time. Schenectady deserved a nice, more modern station here,” Viggiani said.

The station will resemble a former Union Station that was built in 1910 but demolished several decades later.

Viggiani said the $23 million station would be finished in the fall and is part of a 15-year plan to transform Erie Boulevard.

“It took us a longer time to get it going than I would’ve liked, but the governor was a big help in terms of finally putting that package together,” said Schenectady Mayor Gary McCarthy.

Near the station are the Rivers Casino, Riverhouse apartments and restaurants and offices on the Mohawk riverfront.

“The train station is really just the cherry on top of the sundae there,” said Schenectady County Legislator Gary Hughes.

Schenectady is served by Amtrak’s Lake Shore Limited, Ethan Allen Express, Adirondack, Maple Leaf and Empire Service trains to Niagara Falls, New York.

Tags: Amtrak, Amtrak stations, Amtrak's Empire Corridor, Amtrak's Empire Service, new Amtrak stations, Schenectady New York, Schenectady Union Station