Construction on New Brattleboro Amtrak Station Begins in March

The current entrance to Amtrak’s Brattleboro, Vermont station waiting area.

Courtesy of Adam Moss

BRATTLEBORO, Vt. – Enfield Enterprises, LLC will begin work on a new Amtrak train station in Brattleboro.

Construction on a new Amtrak train station will start in March, according to a report from vtdigger.com. The work is expected to take 18 months to complete with Enfield Enterprises, LLC hired to complete said work. In December 2020, the Development Review Board approved the plan for the new station and was subsequently “administratively renewed through December 2023.” Currently, Amtrak utilizes the basement of the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center as a station, and it is the second busiest station in Vermont on the route of Amtrak’s Vermonter. 

The Selectboard voted to allow Amtrak to use part of the Depot Street parking lot for the new construction. According to the report, parking has been added since this decision was made.

Amtrak reportedly had to “negotiate a lease with track owner New England Central Railroad and work with the Vermont Agency of Transportation, the State Historic Preservation Offices of the National Park Service and Green Mountain Power.” The new train station will house a waiting area with 36 seats, a restroom, an outdoor area with more seating, and an engineers’ room. In addition, the project’s construction includes “rebuilding existing siding track and switches and a new, 345-foot-long platform set 48 inches above the rail, a feature that will allow level boarding.” Crews will also install new lighting, signs, drainage, and an “electric snow-melting system.”

The estimated cost of the new station is reported to be $7.4 million, and “Amtrak has also spent $1.7 million on track work and $1 million on design.” Jen Flanagan, Amtrak lead Public Relations Specialist has commented that “the total will be $10 million by completion.” Additionally, a bike shelter with e-bike chargers and a fast charger for electric vehicles will be installed. These will be paid for with funds from the federal Inflation Reduction Act and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.