Work will continue throughout the summer on a pedestrian overpass for train
tracks at the historic Kingston Railroad Station in South Kingstown.
Dan Stessel, a spokesman for Amtrak, said the construction on the $3 million project started in October and the work should be completed by September. He added that the subcontractor hired for the construction is a bit ahead of schedule now. The erection of the main bridge structure was completed last month and most of what remains is interior work. Two stairways and elevators on either side of the walkway will also allow for handicap access across the structure.
“Aside from the primary advantage of making things more convenient, this will also greatly enhance the safety of the station,” Stessel said.
Jack McCabe, a board member of the local group Friends of Kingston Station, said the work is something that has been necessitated by the introduction of the high-speed Acela trains in December 2000. The temporary solution for the last several years has been the transportation of people to the other side of the tracks via a shuttle bus.
With nearly 20 trains a day coming through the station, that necessary shuttling of passengers has increased as dispatchers require boarding of trains from the far side of the track. At one time, before the Acelas began going through town at speeds well above 150 mph, Amtrak dispatchers had just set aside time to allow passengers to walk across the tracks.
McCabe, who is also Kingston’s stationmaster, said the bridge will certainly aid in the efficiency of boarding passengers, but said there are several factors that make the overpass a safe solution. While people obviously can’t respond as quickly to the Acela train barreling down (older trains would typically pass through the station at 35 mph), McCabe also noted that travelers don’t hear the trains traveling on electric rails until they’re relatively close to the station platform.
“The station was built in 1875,” McCabe said. “It was a much, much different world back then.”
McCabe said the local Friends advocacy group was allowed to comment in the early stages of the design. Stessel said Amtrak has continued working with the state Department of Transportation and the Rhode Island Historical Preservation and Heritage Commission to ensure that the addition is aesthetically similar to the restored station. The state commission approved the plans and picked the color scheme for the addition. Plans have called for the overpass to use colors and trim similar to the rest of the station.
“It promises to be a design that speaks to the station’s architecture,” McCabe said. “It will look like it belongs.”
Some of the work is being done at night, while the power is shut down and the electric trains don’t have to run underneath. The bridge will also include two small vestibules and smoked glass siding.
“Work like this always depends on the station itself,” Stessel said. “There’s a long history of beautification work here which we respect. … Anywhere we work on a project, we’re always happy to see communities take on some of that burden to decide what belongs.”
