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  • Amtrak Station Accessibility

  • Discussion related to Amtrak also known as the National Railroad Passenger Corp.
Discussion related to Amtrak also known as the National Railroad Passenger Corp.

Moderators: GirlOnTheTrain, mtuandrew, Tadman

 #959623  by jstolberg
 
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was passed by Congress in 1990. Now, 20 years later, only about 10% of Amtrak stations are fully compliant with ADA requirements.

Amtrak has until September 15, 2015 to make 482 stations fully handicapped accessible. Flag stops are not included. The task is made difficult because Amtrak does not own or control most stations. In some cases the platform is owned by the host railroad, the station has a different owner, and the parking lot has a third owner. Amtrak's progress and strategy were last updated in October 2010. http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/BlobServe ... ct2010.pdf

To illustrate the progress made and the challenges that lie ahead, consider one small town station at Pontiac, IL. The Pontiac station has an average of 42 people per day boarding or alighting from the 4 southbound and 5 northbound trains that stop there. The station and parking lot are privately owned by Gary Porter. The platform is owned by the Union Pacific Railroad. The bathrooms are located in a city park across the street. The station building has a waiting room and is also used by a restaurant, Mexican grocery and tanning salon.

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The platform does not meet accessibility requirements in several respects. First, it is not 8 inches above the top of rail. The station is currently served by both single level and bi-level cars. Plans are for the single-level cars to be replaced by bi-level cars to be ordered later this year. Having a platform 8 inches above the top of rail will align the platform height with the floor of the bi-level cars, allowing wheelchairs to roll on with a simple ramp instead of a lift.
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The station currently has a lift located next to the platform in a steel cage.

One of the difficulties in building a platform 8 inches above the rail is that it will make the platform higher than the adjacent building. Fortunately for Pontiac, most of the building doors open toward the parking lot and not toward the platform.

The platform also needs an edge in a contrasting color and little bumps detectable by blind people. This is to keep them from falling off the edge of the platform and into the path of an oncoming train. A painted yellow line would be helpful until a new platform is built to keep sighted people from wandering too close to the tracks.

The handicapped parking place is marked with a sign, but not marked on the pavement with paint.
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The waiting room is above the top of rail. This picture shows a ramp leading up to the waiting room.
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Inside, the waiting room has plenty of seats and 20 electrical outlets.
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One electrical outlet is damaged, and one window is badly cracked.
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Bathrooms are across the street at the city park.
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Plenty of long-term parking is available for a $2 per day fee paid by dropping some cash in an envelope and dropping the envelope in a slot. Tickets are not available at the station, nor is baggage service.
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The track and ties have not yet been replaced, but material is on site to do the work later this year.
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On Sunday, July 31st, the southbound Texas Eagle arrived 37 minutes late. Bringing the track speed up to 110 mph between Dwight and Pontiac won't do much to improve the schedule when the train loses over 30 minutes in the first 37 miles.

Pontiac is considering building a new station if a second track is added through town.
http://www.pontiacdailyleader.com/featu ... -new-depot
 #959662  by gprimr1
 
I thought this thing died when Amtrak and Vermont basically said they would axe the Vermonter because it would be financially impossible to build high level platforms at every station.

I think the ADA is about reasonable accommodations. To me, forcing the railroad to build high level platforms at every station, even one a days is extreme overkill.
 #959693  by afiggatt
 
gprimr1 wrote:I thought this thing died when Amtrak and Vermont basically said they would axe the Vermonter because it would be financially impossible to build high level platforms at every station.

I think the ADA is about reasonable accommodations. To me, forcing the railroad to build high level platforms at every station, even one a days is extreme overkill.
Thia is about building 8" high platforms for even boarding levels with the Superliners and future bi-level cars in the western corridors. The issue of how to define what qualifies for ADA compliance and how to acheive is discussed in the Amtrak ADA report. Last year's ADA report was interesting because of the difficulties Amtrak was running into , I'll have to check the new one.
 #959695  by R36 Combine Coach
 
giljanus wrote:You just missed a new update (57 pages) that is dated August 8th, 2011:

http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/BlobServe ... G_2011.pdf
Very helpful, with the station ownership index. Even in the Northeast Corridor, many Amtrak stations are not directly owned by Amtrak, but owned by private owners, local or state agencies, non-profit entities or by the operating railroad company.
 #959843  by MattW
 
Um, actually aren't the Superliners eighTEEN inches above the railhead? I thought that due to conflicts with freight trains and crew possibly riding them, the FRA didn't allow for any platforms over 8 inches which would preclude truly level boarding on anything but dedicated passenger lines (NEC), terminal stations, or passenger train only station tracks.
 #959920  by jstolberg
 
MattW wrote:Um, actually aren't the Superliners eighTEEN inches above the railhead? I thought that due to conflicts with freight trains and crew possibly riding them, the FRA didn't allow for any platforms over 8 inches which would preclude truly level boarding on anything but dedicated passenger lines (NEC), terminal stations, or passenger train only station tracks.
Matt, I stand corrected. The FRA has defined ADA compliant platforms as 8 inches above the rail, but Superliner floors are 18 inches above the rail. Talgo floors are 22 inches above the rail.

R36, thanks for noting the new update. Apparently, Amtrak plans quarterly progress reports going forward.
 #960004  by EricL
 
The new St. Louis station was built with platforms slightly higher than the "low platform" norm. Superliner vestibule floors, and the first (lowest) stair steps of single level equipment, more or less line up directly with the height of the platforms. I think this is a good compromise - assuming new rolling stock is ever ordered that does away with the traditional stair steps (and thus, the need for standalone wheelchair lifts). However, it should be noted that the platforms in question are located 100% on "Amtrak" property, away from freight movements; I do not know about any clearance issues that this configuration might bring up.

Super-low platforms (i.e. those even below the height of the railhead) are completely unacceptable in my mind. These exist at most rural LD stations, and even at some fairly busy "corridor" stops. These platforms were built low to begin with, and have only sunken lower over time due to erosion/subsidence. (Or, the roadbed had been raised up, but the platforms left the same.) Some of these platforms are so low that even the use of a step box presents a formidable step-up for all but the most able-bodied. The reason these still persist is, of course: who is going to pay for new ones, and how?
 #960452  by amm in ny
 
Some random thoughts:

1. IIRC, ADA doesn't require ADA-compliant stuff to be retrofitted on existing structures. It only kicks in if you replace or renovate your stuff. Simple repairs don't trigger it, although if your "repairs" are significant enough, it counts as renovation and ADA starts to apply. I would guess that replacing one slab of a "super-low" platform would be OK, but if you replace the whole platform, you need to comply with ADA.

2. I keep hearing it said that level-boarding platforms can't be used in most places because of freight trains. Would gauntlet track be a way to use higher-level platforms than are normally allowed for freight traffic? IIRC, they use that at New Carrollton, MD. Yes, it's expensive, but maybe not as expensive as putting in a separate track just for passenger trains, and it wouldn't require as much space.

3. If I were confined to a wheelchair, I would be very reluctant to depend upon a wheelchair lift to get on or off the train. For one thing, the only time they're used is for the (rare) wheelchair user, so the likelihood that it won't work when I'm depending upon to is high. Something that is rarely used is likely not to work, as people frequently find out with backup generators, disaster recovery sites, etc. For another, it depends upon human beings knowing how to do something they don't do very often, and I'd be worried about them either screwing up (and maybe dumping me headfirst onto the platform), or just plain refusing to do it. If I couldn't rely on being able to drag myself up and down the stairs on my own if necessary, I probably would opt for another form of transport.

This has been something I've thought about for years, since I commute via Metro-North (NYC area), and MN has a lot of island platforms with elevators, which, in my experience, work only some of the time. I have a flakey knee and there have been times when I regularly used the elevator to spare my knee added stress. At that time, the elevator was functioning only about half the time. (MN must have a several-inch-deep file of reports from me for non-functioning elevators.) I've wondered what I would do if I were confined to a wheelchair, arrived at my station, and discovered that I was stranded on the island platform because the elevator didn't work. This may be why I have never seen a wheelchair user on a MN train. (Not saying there aren't any, but I haven't seen any.)

I would be far more likely to trust a raised platform, even a fairly short one with a ramp and maybe a bridge plate. Especially if I had some way of confirming that it was in fact present, and not just supposed to be there. Of course, there'd have to be one on every platform, or Murphy's law would guarrantee that my train would stop on the platform that didn't have one the day I rode the train.
 #960581  by David Benton
 
everyone automatically thinks of wheelchairs , when thinking of "disabled access" , but the reality is , with an ageing , more obese population (worldwide , though apparently America takes the cake , i havent been there for 20 years ) , improved access benefits a large and growing section of rail users . of course the major benefit for the rail operator is the speeding up of boarding times .
 #960595  by westriverrr
 
amm in ny says:

3. If I were confined to a wheelchair, I would be very reluctant to depend upon a wheelchair lift to get on or off the train. For one thing, the only time they're used is for the (rare) wheelchair user, so the likelihood that it won't work when I'm depending upon to is high. Something that is rarely used is likely not to work, as people frequently find out with backup generators, disaster recovery sites, etc. For another, it depends upon human beings knowing how to do something they don't do very often, and I'd be worried about them either screwing up (and maybe dumping me headfirst onto the platform), or just plain refusing to do it. If I couldn't rely on being able to drag myself up and down the stairs on my own if necessary, I probably would opt for another form of transport.


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I work for a bus company where part of the pretrip involves cycling the lift. Am I to assume that a similar test is done daily by the attendant at staffed Amtrak stations? And what about unstaffed ones? How are they checked and kept in good repair?
 #961199  by jstolberg
 
Amtrak's station at Toccoa is their least busy in the state of Georgia. An average of 10 passengers board or alight daily. On the morning of May 22nd, one passenger alighted, arriving from New York. One passenger boarded, headed for the University of Florida at Gainesville. She would transfer to a bus at Atlanta. The schedule makes trips into Atlanta in the morning and from Atlanta in the evening convenient. But Peachtree Station in Atlanta is not centrally located.
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Parking is adequate and includes two spaces that are striped for handicapped parking but not posted with a sign. Pavement and sidewalk slopes are gentle, but the station does not have a wheelchair lift. The asphalt platform is lower than the tracks and does not have a warning stripe or detectable edge. The platform slopes away from the tracks. Building a raised platform would block drainage from the tracks and require some sort of storm sewer to be constructed.

The station was rehabilitated in 2005. One of the key architectural changes was the addition of the large roof overhang seen in the picture above. The overhang provides an opportunity for passengers to escape the summer sun and wait outdoors for their train in the shade. Unfortunately, the Crescent arrives southbound at 6:15 am and northbound at about 10 pm.

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The station also hosts the Toccoa chamber of commerce and a museum. Neither are open when the train arrives.
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The waiting room is open and well lit. It has adequate seating and electrical outlets.
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The bathroom does not meet ADA requirements. On May 22nd, it was dirty and had no toilet tissue, paper towels or soap.
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Informational signage is good, although the station lacks the new LED variable message signs or signs in Braille.
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On May 22nd, the southbound Crescent arrived right on time as the sun was rising.
 #963273  by JimBoylan
 
Many of the handicapped lifts at remote stations are hand operated by a crank and winch, so no worries about power failures or bad motors. Amtrak has contractors to inspect and maintain them, how well, I don't know.