NEWS



National Railroad Passenger Corporation
Amtrak Intercity
210 South Canal Street
Chicago, Illinois 60606
Fax: 312 655-2565


 
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE				       ATK-96-92
April 30, 1996						       Contact: Marc Magliari 312-655-1338 								       or Ray Lang 800-SKY-PAGE + 3011128

AMTRAK CARDINAL KEEPS CHARLESTON, W.VA, STATION STOP

	CHICAGO -- The Amtrak Cardinal, a tri-weekly scenic train between Chicago and 
Washington, D.C., will continue to directly serve Charleston, W.Va., it was announced today.

	The sale of the Charleston station to a private owner and the expiration of a 25-year agreement enabling Amtrak to use the depot rent-free combined to raise doubts as to whether the Cardinal would continue to use the facility.  However, talks with the building's owner have resulted in a five-year lease with Amtrak to use the station at  350 MacCorkle Ave., SE.

	Amtrak thanks Charleston Mayor Kemp Melton and St. Albans, W.Va., Mayor A. Eddie Bassitt  for working hard to keep a Charleston-area stop.  Amtrak had considered stopping in St. Albans in the event the corporation was unsuccessful in reaching a new lease agreement in Charleston.

	In Amtrak fiscal year 1995 (Oct. 1, 1994-Sept. 30, 1995), 10,386 passengers used the Charleston station, making it the busiest Amtrak station in West Virginia.

	The eastbound Cardinal (Train #50) stops in Charleston at 10:35 a.m. every Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.  The westbound Cardinal (Train #51) stops in Charleston at 8:05 p.m. every Sunday, Wednesday and Friday.  

	The station is staffed with a ticket agent and offers checked baggage service.  It is open Thursdays and Saturdays from 9:00 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. and Sundays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 9:00 a.m. until 12 noon and again from 6:30 p.m. until 9:00 p.m.

	Please see an authorized Amtrak travel agent, visit a staffed Amtrak station or call 1-800-USA-RAIL for details on this or any other service.

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