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A Trip to Syracuse by: Greg Jandura |
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The WNYRHS, endeavors to try new and exciting places to go by train for its members and the general public. A dozen Society members took advantage of a limited time "buy one get one free" ticket offer from Amtrak© and made an exploratory trip to Syracuse, New York to rate to the feasibility of such a trip. The results met with mixed reviews as follows. |
| Our odyssey began on Saturday, February 23rd, 2002, not knowing what the day would offer as we departed the Amtrak© Station in Depew aboard train #286 shortly before 9:00am. Mike Fitzsimmons and Bob Snyder were our trip coordinators. We departed from Depew on time and we reached Syracuse some two hours later, shortly after 11:00am a little ahead of schedule. |  |
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Our party besides myself and the above mentioned included: Bud Benedict, Gary Ludwig, Alan Olmstead, Bob Reynders, Jim Slominski, Roger Smith, George Specht, Rich Stasiak and Art Toale. It had been several years since I had been to Syracuse, and I was quite impressed with the new intermodal transportation center, still remembering the Amtrak© Station a few miles east at DeWitt, New York. The Syracuse Regional Transportation Center has city transit buses as well as Greyhound/Trailways buses and taxi cabs on the ground level along with a Dunkin' Donuts and a Subway Shoppe and vending machines to satisfy your appetite. |
| There is also an information counter to help make your visit more enjoyable. The waiting area and restrooms are spotless, clean and bright. Amtrak© trains that arrive and depart on the elevated level at the other end of the building, can be accessed by ramp or stairs, with a partially enclosed long high and wide platform. The upper level of the intermodal center is built along the CSX mainline. We definately need something similar in downtown Buffalo! |
| Although we could have taken a city transit bus for a $1 fare to the Carousel Center two blocks away, we opted to walk. We had to get across a major intersection with a traffic light and very heavy traffic. Walking is not recommended if you have a lot of people in your group. The temperature was in the low 30's, overcast but no snow on the ground. In the future, " OnTrack" will come directly into the Regional Transportation Center and go beyond the baseball stadium. Hopefully, this will happen soon and make it much more convenient to get around for a large tour group. |  |
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From the Carousel Center, a huge indoor shopping center much like our Galleria Mall, we had to get across another busy highway to reach the "OnTrack" Carousel Center Station on the other side of the street which was an open-air roofed platform. "OnTrack" is a RDC (Rail Diesel Car) service linking the Carousel Center with downtown Syracuse (Armory Square Station) and Syracuse University operated by the New York, Susquehanna & Western Railroad. The fare is $1.50 one way which you pay as you board the RDC. We were probably their largest passenger load on that particular day! |
| A one-way trip from the Carousel Center to Syracuse University takes about 15 minutes. Trains operate Wednesday through Sunday. Our Motorman also serves as Conductor and Station Agent, making it a true "one man operation"! We each paid $3.00 for a round trip, getting a token for the return trip. The station building is next to the site of the original DL&W Station and is built somewhat to resemble it. It was now time for lunch, so we walked a few blocks over to the Armory Square Historic District offering galleries, quiant shops and restaurants. |  |
| After we ate, our next stop was the Museum of Science ans Technology, admission fee, $5.00. They offer IMAX© Movies for an additional $4.00. We had to watch out for our time, so after about two hours we walked back slowly to the Armory Square Station. |
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There was still some time before the RDC train would take us back to the Carousel Center where we would catch the inbound train from Syracuse University. Along the way we stopped to admire a pair of E8's on a segment of elevated track to the north of the station. Both have been restored to the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad passenger train colors of grey, yellow and maroon, by the NRHS Central New York Chapter. They were quite impressive, I must say! |
| Continuing onward, we reached the Armory Square Station where our RDC motorman was waiting for us. We turned in our tokens and were early enough to get another quick ride up and back from Syracuse University. We boarded the train and realized that two of our members were missing and no where to be found. The train had to leave, and hopefully, we thought, Gary Ludwig and Bob Snyder would turn up soon, unless something dreadful had happened, although highly unlikely. Sure enough, they were at the Armory Square Station when the train returned. It seemed that they wanted to get closer to the E8's to get better pictures and further inspect the units. We all learned that taking a head count on an excursion is always a must! Returning to the Carousel Center Station, we walked across the street and into the Carousel Center for a look around. The Carousel Center gets its name from a restored 1909 Carousel offering rides to the public. It is surrounded by a huge curved glass window. Along the window are chairs and tables to for one to sit and eat from the adjacent foodcourt. The "Center" is a must see for the railfan. Right outside the large windows and across the street from the "OnTrak" Station, you have the CSX mainline, which offers plenty of freight and occasional passenger train action. You can also sit in you vehicle in the adjacent parking lot and just "watch trains." |
| We walked back to the Transportation Center with almost an hour to spare. Here we caught the eastbound "Maple Leaf", Amtrak #64, both arriving and departing and were treated to the sight of an ex-SanteFe coach bringing up the rear, deadheading to New York City. We departed the Center Station on Amtrak© #281, on time at 5:00 pm., and had a peaceful two hour ride after our adventure. By now most of us were tired from the day's fun filled events and were anxious to get back to the Depew Station, which we arrived at shortly after 7:00 pm. |  |
| Most of the guys had parked their vehicles at the eastern end of the station parking lot and probably missed the "grand finale" of our day! Jim Slominski, Bob Snyder and myself were parked at the other end of the lot where the engine of Amtrak© #281 stood waiting for departure on its last leg of its journey to Niagara Falls. |
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Just as the Genesis locomotive rev'ed up and began to pull the train out of the station, we saw big orange flames, against a pitch black sky, briefly shooting out of the exhaust stack on the locomotive roof. I comment on this, in that I thought that only General Electric freight units did that, but now we all know otherwise! I then stood and watched the lighted car windows and red marker lights slowly fade into the distance down the track. It was the perfect end to a "railfan" day! |
| In summation, the Amtrak© trips and the rides on the "OnTrack" RDC, were a railfan's delight. Everyone had a good satisfying meal and the Science Museum was OK, although not anything special. Syracuse is definitely a good "hot spot" to watch trains. The major problem is getting around somewhat for larger tour groups which will hopefully resolve itself, when "OnTrack" is incorporated into the Regional Transportation Center. Another problem may be getting a good low Amtrak fare on short notice. For now, this possible trip will be put on the "back burner" for another time. |
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