This morning, the Buffalo News published an article entitled
“Central Terminal won’t serve as rail hub“. An excerpt is below:
“At first I had hoped [it could be], but I don’t think it’s situated in the right place,” said Slaughter, DFairport. “[State] transit officials tell me it would not be suitable, which is too bad. I can tell you they absolutely love it; it’s the last of its kind left in the United States.”
Skip Carrier, a state Department of Transportation spokesman, later explained that the presence of several freight tracks at the northwestern section of the Central Terminal rail yard made the return of passenger service there unlikely.
“It is a very, very difficult situation, given the congestion with freight rail traffic,” Carrier said.
However, Slaughter said she “loves the building” and held out hope for the iconic Art Deco building’s future on Buffalo’s East Side.
“We have to do something for that terminal,” she said. “It is a jewel, and I am very excited about seeing what we can do. I think there will be some help down the road, but not in the high-speed rail bill.”
The Central Terminal Restoration Corporation’s response, as stated in the article, is as follows:
“Things haven’t been finalized. Until they are, we remain optimistic that the Central Terminal will play an important role with high-speed rail in Western New York. We are still proceeding to prepare the terminal for future development”
Mark Lewandowski
Vice President, Central Terminal Restoration Corporation
July 14, 2009
The full article is available on the Buffalo News website, which now allows comments from users. Supporters of our efforts are encouraged to share their opinion.
It’s a shame…an opportunity like that only come around once in a lifetime!
Maybe something can be worked out. We’ll have to see how this drama eventually plays out. Maybe something can be done to relieve the freight congestion by installing bypasses, relocating tracks, improving traffic control, etc.. This story isn’t over by any means. Despite what the naysayers are trumpeting, this situation really needs a second, and possibly third look by others. If not high speed rail, than at least conventional passenger rail should take a serious look at coming back to BCT. That is why BCT was put there on the first place. It ain’t over ’till it’s over! (I can’t help but think of the Bugs Bunny cartoon where they tried to build a super highway over his rabbit hole, and he swung into action (chuckle).)
It is a true shame, I had high hopes that the Buffalo Terminal would be the future hub for high speed rail. I think it is best to never give up hope. I just hope that it could be restored as an Amtrak Station and use it as an industrial park. I would hate to see this building used for condos or a hotel.
Perhaps when all the alternatives are reconsidered, and it is concluded that there really ISN’T a more suitable location for a passenger rail hub in western NY than the Central Terminal, whether it be high speed rail, conventional passenger rail service or otherwise. Late breaking developments have been known to happen, and surprises have been known to pop up unexpectedly. A corporate decision by CSX and/or NS could pave the way, to change the way the current and future powers that be are viewing the situation, and Central Terminal could still be THE most attractive and most suitable venue for a major passenger rail hub in western NY, be it conventional rail, high speed rail or otherwise. We at the CTRC cannot let the current situation derail our efforts to bring life back into the facility. Once redevelopment of the terminal starts to ramp up, and businesses begin once again to repopulate the facility, many will be looking again and will realize that their current assumption is a bit premature. They really haven’t looked at ALL the facts, just the ones that are most convenient for them to look at at the moment!
The debate lives on in Railroad.net
http://railroad.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=128&t=63425