BWI Rail Station

BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport, MD
Station viewed from the adjacent parking garage
Location 7 Amtrak Way
Linthicum, Maryland
United States
Coordinates 39°11′33″N 76°41′41″W / 39.192377°N 76.694645°W / 39.192377; -76.694645Coordinates: 39°11′33″N 76°41′41″W / 39.192377°N 76.694645°W / 39.192377; -76.694645
Owned by Amtrak
Line(s) Northeast Corridor
Platforms 2 side platforms
Tracks 3
Connections ✈ BWI Terminal via Free Shuttle
Tram interchange Baltimore Light Rail via Shuttle
MTA Bus 17, MTA Bus 201
BWI Business Partnership County Connector
BWI Business Partnership LINK
RTA 501/Silver
UMBC-BWI Line
BWI Trail
Construction
Parking 3,200 spaces; Paid garage[1]
Bicycle facilities Yes
Disabled access Yes
Other information
Station code BWI (Amtrak)
History
Opened October 26, 1980
Traffic
Passengers (2017) 724,865 annually[2] Increase 5.2% (Amtrak)
Services
Preceding station   Amtrak   Following station
Terminus
Acela Express
toward Boston South
Northeast Regional
toward Savannah
Palmetto
toward New York
Vermonter
toward St. Albans
MARC
Penn Line
toward Perryville

BWI Airport station is a train station located in Anne Arundel County, Maryland near Baltimore–Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport. It is served by Amtrak Northeast Corridor intercity trains and MARC Penn Line regional rail trains.

Located just over a mile from the airport's terminal, the station was the first intercity rail station in the U.S. built to service an airport.[3] A free shuttle bus runs between the station and the airport terminal every 6 minutes from 5 am to 1 am and every 25 minutes from 1 am to 5 am.[4]

Although Penn Station is reckoned as the Baltimore area's main intercity station, BWI Airport is a major station in its own right. It is Amtrak's sixth-busiest station in the Mid-Atlantic region (behind New York Penn, Washington, Philadelphia, Baltimore Penn and Albany-Rensselaer) and the 12th busiest nationwide.

History

Amtrak VP Bill Norman speaks at the dedication ceremony in October 1980

First proposed in 1964 by Charles Adler, a Baltimore-based inventor of traffic and aircraft safety devices,[5] the station was dedicated on October 23, 1980 – coincidentally, mere hours after Adler's death – and opened for Amtrak intercity and Conrail commuter trains three days later.[6]

The station's building houses a ticketing desk, waiting room, and a concessions area. The adjacent parking garage is used by commuters who ride the train to work in Baltimore or Washington, and also contains the bus stop for shuttles to the BWI terminal. The garage was built in the late 1990s to replace a smaller surface lot. It contains 3,200 parking spaces and typically does not fill to capacity.[7] The Carolinian served the station between 1991 and 2004.

Platform renovations

The 1,050 feet (320 m) high-level platforms were rebuilt and lengthened between 2006 and 2010.[8] The existing structures were replaced with new precast concrete segments, and new signs, lights, shelters, railing, canopies, and benches were installed.[9]

Future expansion

$9.4 million has been allocated for design and engineering of a new station building and fourth track, which is expected to cost $80–100 million. The existing station will be demolished to make way for the new track and platform, and a new station—twice the size of the old—will be built.[10][11] The Federal Railroad Administration issued a Finding Of No Significant Impact—a major step in the environmental review process—in February 2016. This will allow final design and construction to proceed once funding is obtained.[12]

Station layout and services

A Northeast Regional train at the station

Northeast Corridor

BWI Rail Station is located on Amtrak's Northeast Corridor, a 457-mile-long (735 km) rail line connecting Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, New York, and Boston. Amtrak's Northeast Regional, Acela Express, Vermonter, and Palmetto, as well as the MARC Penn Line commuter rail service, stop at the station. Amtrak long distance trains, as well as some Northeast Regional and Acela Express trains, bypass the station.

Side platform, doors will open on the right
Track 3 ← Penn Line toward Washington, D.C. (Odenton)
← Acela Express toward Washington (Terminus)
← Northeast Regional toward Northern Virginia (New Carrollton)
← Vermonter toward Washington (New Carrollton)
← Palmetto toward Savannah (Baltimore)
Track 2 ← Amtrak services do not stop here →
← some Penn Line express services do not stop here →
Track 1 Palmetto toward New York (Baltimore) →
Vermonter toward St. Albans (Baltimore) →
Acela Express and Northeast Regional toward Boston (Baltimore) →
Penn Line toward Baltimore, Martin Airport or Perryville (Halethorpe) →
Side platform, doors will open on the right

Public transit services

An airport shuttle bus at the station

Pedestrian and bicycle access

  • BWI Trail: A hiker/biker trail completely encircles the airport grounds parallel to the Airport Loop, and runs adjacent to the station.[14]
  • An elevated walkway connects the station (at the second floor of the southbound platform's stairwell) with office buildings on Corporate Center Drive, including the Maryland Department of Transportation headquarters.

References

  1. ↑ https://mta.maryland.gov/marc-station-information
  2. ↑ "Amtrak Fact Sheet, FY2017, State of Maryland" (PDF). Amtrak Government Affairs. November 2017. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
  3. ↑ "BWI Rail Station dedication booklet, 1980". Amtrak. Retrieved September 30, 2013.
  4. ↑ "Ground Transportation: Amtrak". Maryland Aviation Administration. Retrieved May 9, 2017.
  5. ↑ Rasmussen, Charles (1999-09-11). "In Traffic, He Saw the Light". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 2018-06-11.
  6. ↑ Shifrin, Carole (October 24, 1980). "BWI Airport Rail Link Celebrates Opening". Washington Post. p. D3 – via Proquest Historical Newspapers. (Subscription required (help)).
  7. ↑ "Availability of MARC Parking". Archived from the original on July 12, 2008. Retrieved July 13, 2008.
  8. ↑ "Maryland Transit Administration renovates BWI station platforms". Progressive Railroading. Trade Press Media Group, Inc. November 24, 2010. Retrieved September 30, 2013.
  9. ↑ "MARC Council January 2010 Meeting Minutes" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on February 23, 2010.
  10. ↑ "Governor O'Malley Applauds President Obama for High Speed Rail Investment in Maryland" (Press release). State of Maryland. January 28, 2010. Archived from the original on February 3, 2010.
  11. ↑ "Maryland has plans for bigger BWI rail station". Railway Track and Structures. New York: Simmons-Boardman Publishing. September 9, 2009. Archived from the original on July 15, 2011.
  12. ↑ "FRA Gives Green Light to Rebuild BWI Rail Station, Increase Service and Reliability" (Press release). Federal Railroad Administration. February 4, 2016. Retrieved February 4, 2016.
  13. ↑ "Bus Routes". Maryland Transit Administration. Archived from the original on January 18, 2010. Retrieved November 10, 2009.
  14. ↑ "The BWI Trail". Bike Washington. Retrieved September 30, 2013.
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