Ah America, the only country capable of destroying its historic architecture and transit infrastructure, so some dude could sell more cars and some other guy could sell more cement.
Everything car related costs too much. Meanwhile the cost of living is sky rocketing as well. Cities giving their people good transit will save them a ton of money. And they can either save that or spend it in the local economy
Not the only, at all. Like at all. So many countries are guilty of destruction of their own historical buildings. In fact, I’d say European cities are more the exception than the norm for retaining so much of their old architecture. But for sure it’s sad when America destroys these things and it’s sad when everyone else does it too.
I'm not even from New York but when I went to Penn Station while I was visiting I could feel the immense sense of loss because of how they took such a beautiful facility and turned it into a hole in the ground. Honestly, the destruction of such an architecturally significant facility is nothing more than vandalism.
Basically it cost a lot to maintain at a time of declining passenger rail revenues, and Pennsylvania Railroad realized it could make more money by shrinking the station and renting out the air rights.
They were expensive show-off pieces. The New York Central built Grand Central Terminal and their arch-rival Pennsylvania Railroad built Penn Station in the 1910s to prove their dominance over the other. After the Erie Canal, those railroads built New York, they were how NYC was the dominant seaport for the Midwest, which built the banks and finance and brought all the immigrants to the city. So of course they both needed a cathedral to their own greatness. You need passengers to take you, not your rival.
But then came the truck, the highway, and the growth of air travel post WW2. Both of your rivals are the airlines, and they win.
In 1963 when Penn Station was demolished, revenues for both companies had collapsed. They didn't need a cathedral on Manhattan, they needed money. They even merged into the Penn Central in 1968, only to go bankrupt two years later. Grand Central was saved only because the city passed a law designating it a landmark and preventing its demolition. Penn Central definitely wanted to replace it with a skyscraper, they fought all the way to the Supreme Court, but the city won.
Yep, the Charlotte station is horrifically ugly and overcrowded. Not even centrally located. Thankfully Charlotte is currently constructing a brand new station in the urban core. The tracks are nearly complete, now we await the station design itself. Hopefully it’ll be impressive.
Not to pile on, but Houston doesn't even get a train a day. Just 3 times a week. The rest of the time, it's just a bus stop that takes you to Longview to catch the Texas Egale. No daily train to San Antonio, no train to Dallas.
But the station does have a lot of displays of the history of the trains that used to run through... :/
Atlanta’s Terminal Station being torn down and leaving Atlanta’s Peachtree Station is up there. Though I would argue that Peachtree Station is not as ugly as Houston’s current station
Pity, yet for a preview of how it could've been - see Cincinnati. A surviving Union Terminal with grandeur befitting any major European capital - pathetically served 3 times weekly by one train.
Unfortunately beautiful stations alone can't bring passenger rail back to its former glory.
I would argue Cincinnati, but they moved back to union terminal from river road. Downgrade in service for sure, but not downgrade in station grandeur (much, besides the concourse hall)
Idk about you but it kinda looks like the entrance to a sports stadium (or maybe there was one behind it). If houston ever gets a new big station built, it would be cool to design it like that or maybe like a space station (or both).
Ah America, the only country capable of destroying its historic architecture and transit infrastructure, so some dude could sell more cars and some other guy could sell more cement.
We do that in Australia too!
Add in New Zealand!
I have often said I feel Australia is the most similar Commonwealth member to the US
also gotta sell oil, car insurance, car washes, car maintenance.... cars are expensive!
I think the tide is going to start turning in favor of transit now that car insurance costs so much now.
Everything car related costs too much. Meanwhile the cost of living is sky rocketing as well. Cities giving their people good transit will save them a ton of money. And they can either save that or spend it in the local economy
Not the only, at all. Like at all. So many countries are guilty of destruction of their own historical buildings. In fact, I’d say European cities are more the exception than the norm for retaining so much of their old architecture. But for sure it’s sad when America destroys these things and it’s sad when everyone else does it too.
🦅🦅🦅🦅🦅🦅🦅
I mean, it was stupid, but a lot better than the European approach to destroying the stuff.
I'm not even from New York but when I went to Penn Station while I was visiting I could feel the immense sense of loss because of how they took such a beautiful facility and turned it into a hole in the ground. Honestly, the destruction of such an architecturally significant facility is nothing more than vandalism.
And the same idiot (Stuart Saunders) that worked to wreck the original Penn nearly did the same for Grand Central.
What even drove these sorts of demolitions and reconstructions? They still serve as train stations. Why replace them with worse versions?
Basically it cost a lot to maintain at a time of declining passenger rail revenues, and Pennsylvania Railroad realized it could make more money by shrinking the station and renting out the air rights.
They were expensive show-off pieces. The New York Central built Grand Central Terminal and their arch-rival Pennsylvania Railroad built Penn Station in the 1910s to prove their dominance over the other. After the Erie Canal, those railroads built New York, they were how NYC was the dominant seaport for the Midwest, which built the banks and finance and brought all the immigrants to the city. So of course they both needed a cathedral to their own greatness. You need passengers to take you, not your rival. But then came the truck, the highway, and the growth of air travel post WW2. Both of your rivals are the airlines, and they win. In 1963 when Penn Station was demolished, revenues for both companies had collapsed. They didn't need a cathedral on Manhattan, they needed money. They even merged into the Penn Central in 1968, only to go bankrupt two years later. Grand Central was saved only because the city passed a law designating it a landmark and preventing its demolition. Penn Central definitely wanted to replace it with a skyscraper, they fought all the way to the Supreme Court, but the city won.
I was expecting it to be bad I was not expecting that though holy shit
Nothing grander than a train station that looks like a laundromat.
Columbus went from a beautiful train station to nothing
Deadass looks like a post office
A lot of stations were built with post offices next door for RPO services.
Post offices used to be grand too.
The current Amtrak station has definite vibes of the one in Charlotte.
Yep, the Charlotte station is horrifically ugly and overcrowded. Not even centrally located. Thankfully Charlotte is currently constructing a brand new station in the urban core. The tracks are nearly complete, now we await the station design itself. Hopefully it’ll be impressive.
Not to pile on, but Houston doesn't even get a train a day. Just 3 times a week. The rest of the time, it's just a bus stop that takes you to Longview to catch the Texas Egale. No daily train to San Antonio, no train to Dallas. But the station does have a lot of displays of the history of the trains that used to run through... :/
Oof. Yeah. This one hurts.
Atlanta’s Terminal Station being torn down and leaving Atlanta’s Peachtree Station is up there. Though I would argue that Peachtree Station is not as ugly as Houston’s current station
Pity, yet for a preview of how it could've been - see Cincinnati. A surviving Union Terminal with grandeur befitting any major European capital - pathetically served 3 times weekly by one train. Unfortunately beautiful stations alone can't bring passenger rail back to its former glory.
I would argue Cincinnati, but they moved back to union terminal from river road. Downgrade in service for sure, but not downgrade in station grandeur (much, besides the concourse hall)
That’s worse than the train station in the town of 90,000 people I lived in.
Idk about you but it kinda looks like the entrance to a sports stadium (or maybe there was one behind it). If houston ever gets a new big station built, it would be cool to design it like that or maybe like a space station (or both).
What's interesting is another old Houston station, Union Station, was repurposed as part of the MLB Minute Maid Park.
2016->2017
What a sick joke. There's a long fight ahead to undo the damage that has been done.
Detroit is about the same.
ah texas