posted
Well, since I couldn't come up with any stayovers in FL that I can afford, I decided to come back coach as far as Raleigh, NC, and stop there to see the city. At that point I can do 1 of 2 things
(a) stay overnight in Raleigh and get back on the Silver Star the next day
(b) check luggage in Raleigh station and catch the Piedmont (I think that's the name/) to Greensboro; it gets there around 6:30PM. Have dinner in Greensboro. Get back to station and catch the northbound Crescent. This whole endeavor will let me see more things I've never seen and ride a train I've never ridden, which I like to do! Problem is, the northbound Crescent goes thru Greensboro in the middle of the night. I don't mind being up then, but I worry--is Greensboro Station safe that time of night? Will I be comfortable waiting there?
I thought about staying in a hotel in Greensboro and catching the Carolinian (I think that's the name) back north, but it gets into NYP too late for me to get back upstate comfortable, and even too late for me to go stay over with a friend. So the better option is to take the Crescent, except for that middle of the night deal. I don't mind being up middle of night (I sleep erratically anyway) but wonder what's it's like to be in the station at that time.
Thanks for the input!
notelvis Member # 3071
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Hey Sojourner....
First things first - I think you will find the Greensboro station a safe and comfortable place to wait for a train, even in the middle of the night. The ticket office is open *nearly* 24 hours a day and there has always been a security person on duty when I have been in the station.....both at 9:00am and 10:00pm. Admittedly I have not caught the Crescent there yet.
I say *nearly* because each agent gets a meal break and there may only be one agent on the night shift. I don't know if they put a sign on the window and go or stagger the break with the baggage agent or what.
Secondly....the afternoon Raleigh to Greensboro train (the scheduled 6:30pm arrival) is the Carolinian which originates in New York and will have run the CSX gauntlet by the time it reaches Raleigh. In other words, this train is usually an hour or two late. Not 'awful' but risky enough to ruin fine dining plans in Greensboro. I will note that the Carolinian's timekeeping has improved with cooler temperatures and has been more in the 45-60 minute late range the last couple of weeks.....as opposed to 90-120 or more.
Finally.......if you do want to experience the Piedmont, that would be doable if the northbound Silver Star is within 2 hours of on-time. If the Star reaches Cary, NC by 7:00am you could walk across the parking lot, through the station, and out the other side to catch the Piedmont for Greensboro at about 7:15am. You'd be there about 9:00am. Then, that evening you could catch the Carolinian on to Charlotte and catch the Crescent northbound from there. This would get you on the Crescent two hours earlier. The Charlotte station is nowhere near as attractive as Greensboro......kind of 1960's moderne if you will.....but it, likewise, is staffed and safe all night. Downside to this plan is that the Cary station has no agent or checked baggage so your luggage would have to stay with you to Greensboro. You'd also be passing on Raleigh which probably has more (museums close to the train station) to offer a first time visitor.
Doodlebug Member # 4564
posted Notelvis, I didn't realize the long-rumored addition of Cary, N.C., as a Silver Star stop was finally a reality, although as a result of your post, I now see it on Amtrak's online timetable.
Do you know when that happened? And was a platform built along the CSX track (ex-Seaboard) to facilitate it?
For those not familiar with the Cary station, it is located at the apex of a "V" where the Norfolk Southern (home of the Carolinian and Piedmont) joins with CSX (Silver Star) to form a double-track joint line for the 9 miles between Cary and Raleigh. With much of the Raleigh area's growth occuring in the southwest, this really makes Raleigh a multi-station Amtrak city along the lines of Boston's South Station and Back Bay, albeit with fewer trains. Every train that calls on Raleigh now stops also in Cary, its largest and richest suburb.
Sojourner, I agree that if you're going to spend time in either Cary or downtown Raleigh, Raleigh is the better choice for a visitor. Museums, state capitol, state legislative building (two different things in N.C.) while Cary is a bedroom community with a quaint, but small, downtown.
notelvis Member # 3071
posted
Hi Doodleburg,
Cary was added as a Silver Star stop when the current timetable went into effect this past spring and yes, an additional platform was constructed along the former Seaboard tracks.
The irony is that the initial idea for adding Cary to the Star's timecard was for a 'safer' connection between the Star and the Piedmont, a connection that Amtrak no longer guarantees off the northbound Star.
I could have been clearer in my response to Sojourner but I was speaking of a full day in Raleigh as being preferable to a full day in Greensboro for the first time visitor. Downtown Cary is interesting but probably not for 11-12 hours!
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