Cary, N.C. Expands Busy Station

The remodeled station in bustling downtown Cary has doubled in size and is now staffed with ticket agents. Service has been expanding steadily in Cary, a town which is part of the growing Triangle area of Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill. In 2006, a platform was constructed on the CSX “S” Line and the Silver Star began daily service to Cary, paid for between North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) and the town. The Cary station expects to see 42,000 passengers in the next year, over 100% growth in the five years since the second platform was installed. Cary is served by the the Carolinian, the Piedmont, and the Silver Star.

This recent remodeling expanded the station to 6,200 square feet, installed wooden benches in the waiting room, constructed the ticket window and gave the transit riders their own new waiting room. Besides being staffed, the station offers a Quik-Trak machine, passenger assistance on all trains, and baggage handling for the north side platform. Baggage checking will be extended to the south side platform when improvements are completed.

NCDOT financed the Cary depot's $2.2 million upgrade with part of its $545 million in federal stimulus grants for high-speed rail and intercity passenger rail improvements.