Charlottesville, VA

  next stop to theleft Staunton, VA  Cardinal   Culpeper, VA next stop to theupright 
  next stop to thedownleft Lynchburg, VA  Crescent 
 Northeast Regional 
Home<Amtrak<Charlottesville, VA

Charlottesville, Virginia is one of those few Amtrak stations located on the junction of two railway lines that requires two platforms to serve the 3 trains that stop there. The Cardinal comes in from the west from West Virginia along the Buckingham Branch, a shortline railroad, and crosses the Norfolk Southern Line used by the Crescent and the Lynchburg Northeast Regional Train at a grade just before both trains have their separate platforms. These are on each side of the Amtrak station housed in the Historic Railway Express Agency. Union Station beyond it has been turned into a restaurant. The Cardinal, which uses Charlottesville to change crew, (the Crescent waits until Lynchburg) then follows separate trackage via Gordinsville to Orange where it finally joins its other two counterpart Amtrak trains on the Norfolk Southern Line. According to published timetables (the one effective November 2011) mileage wise the routes are almost the same, the Cardinal to Culpepper is 47 miles while the Crescent route is 44 miles. Time wise though the trackage used by the Cardinal is partially in bad condition and a slower trip taking an hour and 13 or 16 minutes while the Northeast Regional Lynchburger and Crescent can do it in only 52 minutes.
All photos taken on 6 November, 2011

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Amfleet-II Coach #25044 Dome Lounge #11031 in special fall foliage service on the Cardinal
14 July, 2006
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A crowd waits to board the Cardinal
14 July, 2006
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Another view of Dome Lounge #11031
24 October, 2011
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The back of Ocean View
2 November, 2011
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Another back view of Dome Lounge #11031, Ocean View
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The two levels of Ocean View
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The mobile lift about to be used
14 July, 2006
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A passenger rides the mobile lift up to his Amfleet-II rail car
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Still going through boarding the crowd of people onto the Cardinal, taking it just as the Sunday afternoon train back to the NEC cities
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Amtrak without a logo on the side of the depot
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Passengers in the parking lot that has a pay parking honor box like many commuter rail stations
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A bus and parking lot view
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Baggage on the platform for the Cardinal can't get through to be loaded
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The narrow platform for the Cardinal
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A station sign at location 2
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The crowd keeps boarding led to different coaches where there are empty seats
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A modern format sign in posts from what was once one with a pointless arrow
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Home<Amtrak<Charlottesville, VA
Amtrak

Last Updated: 11 November, 2011
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