If you get off your train at a spot directly below Hillsbororugh Street, you will have a 3/4 mile walk to get to the street directly above you.
This is of course not for this commuter line, but rather for Piedmont and S-line trains, but… yikes
We really need to be planning for access to/from the street at the far end of each of these platforms: The S-line from Hillsborough or Morgan Street, and the H-line from West Street as a part of the West Street Extension project.
Is there any chance they could just… build a staircase up to the bridge? 
Of course it’s technically possible, the platforms are likely to be 20-30’ wide, so there is plenty of room for elevators and stairs. But Amtrak (and the freight railroads) like to treat platforms as “secure areas” with restricted access wherever possible, so that makes an open access route from the street to the platform level pretty unlikely.
This is dumb, because (of course) many existing train stations, even including many in our state, do have open access from the platforms to the street.
I was gonna say, High Point literally has a staircase to the platform from a public pedestrian bridge. The bridge is covered and looks like part of the station, but you can walk across it at any time. I think they just close access to the staircase when it’s not in use (not solid on that).
Yeah that is pretty ridiculous. Well, I do feel better at least knowing that the dimensions work out for that to be a possibility in the future. The Hillsborough St. bridge also has absurdly wide sidewalks, at least on the north side.
With Harrgett closed at the tracks, they really should consider some sort of egress, station extension in that area. By the time you walk two long blocks the station you could be the municipal block. haha, late to the game, I guess I get the participation trophy for this idea.
Assuming public money easier to spend than 100% private money.
Rebuilding the Boylan Bridge gives the city an opportunity for a statement bridge that can be viewed from downtown and that can enhance the experience of viewing downtown.
I just talked to Megan Patton uhm yesterday and she said if the typography disaster can get fixed we may get more funding from the feds. Also she told me some insider info that, NSF and Norfolk is just being plan hostile, at the moment. Hopefully not surprising information, however she begging at the moment about the cost, and possibly accelerating the project without state funding.
Thanks for the info!
Did she seem generally supportive of the project herself?
Also, what do you mean by typography disaster?
Typography (the study of how letters and words are printed out)? The NSF (National Science Foundation)? …Try again?
Like the land around the Commuter rail and the double tracking how much space. And the terrain has to be retrofitted for stations, etc., etc.
Yes she’s support the project.
That’s the topography. Please be careful with your words.
With that clarification:
Megan Patton, as in the mom and former teacher/factory manager who was just sworn in as a councilmember? Not to be too harsh on her, but I’m kinda skeptical that she knows what can(not) be funded by the feds or what determines that. Especially if you were just casually chatting about this with her, I’m skeptical that her words actually carry any meaningful weight.
NASF whatever it’s called.
She has no clue along with the one who beat David Knight. Know several folks who have met her and said she is absolutely clueless and way over her head.
So then let’s do something about it also she told me about why she wants to reimagine city engagement. She told me that she agrees that people who are against development in areas that aren’t in their district should not count. But defended CACs them by saying that they were a group where they had firefighters teach people how to turn your stove off, and police officers telling folks to lock their doors and that it wasn’t entirely about development. I took her word cause I’ve never been to a meeting.
Height reduced further, down from 425 feet to under 380 feet. This project no longer in the 400 foot club. This project just keeps getting worse and worse.
Welp, this didn’t age well.
It feels like the parking garage gets bigger and more visible with every redesign…
