Did not know where to post this.
It appears that the long vacant decaying former Pawtucket and Central Falls Depot that sits above three tracks used by Amtrak, MBTA Commuter Rail, and the Providence & Worcester Railroad (freight) appears headed toward demolition. It was built after the tracks had been moved a bit west of downtown Pawtucket and sunk to avoid road crossings. The over 30,000 square foot brick and granite beaux-arts style structure opened in 1916. It had two levels; the upper level housed the 96’ by 64’ waiting room along with a barber shop, restaurant, ticket office, and baggage areas. The lower level had the outdoor track area with two island platforms providing access to all four tracks. Some 140 trains a day once stopped at the new station with an average of seventy thousand passenger departures a month. The station however began to decline in time as less people used the train for transportation with the rise of the auto and it was closed in 1959. It has mostly sat empty since then further deteriorating with time. Its location on a bend in the tracks no longer meets station site codes. That along with prohibitive renovation costs necessitated building the new station which opened in January-2023 just a bit to its southwest.
Demolition will be a costly and very involved process as the large station sits over three very active tracks with two of them electrified. Furthermore, there is a new MBTA Commuter Rail station just to its south which requires commuter trains to reduce approach speeds in this stretch for stops.
PAWTUCKET/CENTRAL FALLS – In the end, a viable future for the old Pawtucket/Central Falls Commuter Rail Station on the line between the two cities might not be viable after all,
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