BWI Rail Station

This article is about a regional and inter-city rail station. For the light rail station at BWI, see BWI Airport station (Light RailLink).

BWI Rail Station (signed as BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport) is an intermodal passenger station in Linthicum, Maryland near Baltimore/Washington International Airport (BWI). It is served by Amtrak Northeast Corridor intercity trains, MARC Penn Line regional rail trains, and several local bus lines.

BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport, MD
Station viewed from the adjacent parking garage in 2019
General information
Location	2-7 Amtrak Way Linthicum, Maryland United States
Coordinates	39°11′33″N 76°41′41″W
Owned by	Maryland Transit Administration (building) Amtrak (rail infrastructure)
Line(s)	Amtrak Northeast Corridor
Platforms	2 side platforms
Tracks	3
Connections	✈ BWI airport terminals (via shuttle) Baltimore Light RailLink (via shuttle) MTA BaltimoreLink: 75, 201[1] BWI Business Partnership LINK Shuttle UMBC Transit: BWI Line BWI Trail
Construction
Parking	3,200 spaces; Paid garages[2]
Bicycle facilities	Yes
Accessible	Yes
Other information
Station code	Amtrak: BWI
History
Opened	October 26, 1980; 44 years ago (1980-10-26)
Rebuilt	2019
Passengers
FY 2023	710,752[3] (Amtrak only)
Services
Preceding station Amtrak Following station Washington, D.C. Terminus Acela Baltimore toward Boston South Washington, D.C. One-way operation Crescent Baltimore toward New York New Carrollton toward Savannah Palmetto New Carrollton toward Norfolk, Newport News or Roanoke Northeast Regional Baltimore toward Boston South or Springfield New Carrollton toward Washington, D.C. Vermonter Baltimore toward St. Albans      Cardinal does not stop here      Carolinian does not stop here      Silver Meteor does not stop here Preceding station MARC Following station Odenton toward Union Station Penn Line Halethorpe toward Perryville
Former services Preceding station Amtrak Following station Odenton toward Washington, D.C. Chesapeake Edmondson toward Philadelphia–Suburban Capital Beltway toward Washington, D.C. Metroliner Baltimore toward New York
Location

The station is located just over a mile from the airport's terminal. It was the first intercity rail station in the United States built to service an airport.^[4] A free shuttle bus runs between the station and the airport terminal at all hours.^[5]

Although Penn Station is the Baltimore area's main intercity station, BWI Airport is a major station in its own right. It is Amtrak's sixth-busiest station in the Mid-Atlantic region (behind New York Penn, Washington, Philadelphia, Baltimore Penn, and Albany-Rensselaer), the third-busiest in the Baltimore-Washington corridor, and the 12th busiest nationwide.

History

Amtrak vice president Bill Norman speaks at the dedication ceremony in October 1980

First proposed in 1964 by Charles Adler, a Baltimore-based inventor of traffic and aircraft safety devices,^[6] the station was dedicated on October 23, 1980 – coincidentally, mere hours after Adler's death – and opened for Amtrak intercity and Conrail (now MARC) commuter trains three days later.^[7][8]

The station's building houses a ticketing desk, waiting room, and a concessions area. The adjacent parking garage is used by commuters who ride the train to work in Baltimore or Washington, and also contains the bus stop for shuttles to the BWI terminal. The garage was built in the late 1990s to replace a smaller surface lot. It contains 3,200 parking spaces and typically does not fill to capacity.^[9] The Carolinian served the station between 1991 and 2004.

Platform renovations

The 1,050 feet (320 m) high-level platforms were rebuilt and lengthened between 2006 and 2010.^[10] The existing structures were replaced with new precast concrete segments, and new signs, lights, shelters, railing, canopies, and benches were installed.^[11]

Expansion

The new station under construction in June 2019

In 2010, $9.4 million was allocated for design and engineering of a new station building and fourth track, which was then expected to cost $80–100 million.^[12][13] MDOT requested $300 million in federal funds for the project in 2011, but the request was denied.^[14] The Federal Railroad Administration issued a Finding Of No Significant Impact—a major step in the environmental review process—in February 2016, clearing the way for final design and construction to begin after funding was obtained.^[15] The project was then expected to cost $600 million and include 9.4 miles (15.1 km) of fourth track.^[14]

On August 27, 2018, the MTA began a $4.7 million project to rebuild and enlarge the station. A temporary station building was used during construction.^[16] The new station opened in October 2019, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony held in December.^[17][18] The renovation did not modify the Amtrak-owned footbridge, which has water leakage and cleanliness issues, nor add WiFi service in the MTA-owned waiting area. In response, the MTA said that it does not offer WiFi at any of its stations, but is working with Amtrak to ensure that the footbridge gets needed repairs.^[18]

Station layout and services

Northeast Corridor

BWI Rail Station is located on Amtrak's Northeast Corridor, a 457-mile-long (735 km) rail line connecting Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, New York, and Boston. Amtrak's Northeast Regional, Acela Express, Crescent, Vermonter, and Palmetto, as well as the MARC Penn Line commuter rail service, stop at the station. Amtrak long distance trains, as well as some Northeast Regional and Acela Express trains, bypass the station.

The station appears in Amtrak timetables as BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport. Unlike most major stations along the Northeast Corridor, it is not possible to check bags to and from BWI; it is the busiest Amtrak station without checked baggage service.

Public transit services

An airport shuttle bus at the station

• Airport shuttle bus: The station is indirectly connected to MTA's Baltimore Light Rail, for which there is a stop (BWI Marshall Airport) station at the airport terminal.
• MTA LocalLink 75: Connects the station to Arundel Mills (to the south) and the Patapsco Baltimore Light Rail station (to the north), with stops at the airport terminal and the BWI Business District station.^[19]
• MTA commuter bus route 201: Offers service between Gaithersburg and BWI Airport.
• UMBC Transit
• BayRunner Shuttle, a private shuttle connecting east to the Eastern Shore area of Maryland and connecting shuttle to Cumberland.
• County Connector, a semi-public funded, free-to-use shuttle, connecting to Arundel Mills, and with Anne Arundel County's 202 and Fort Meade routes, provides a inter-agency link for the NSA Friendship Annex to the National Security Agency.

Pedestrian and bicycle access

• BWI Trail: A walk/bike trail completely encircles the airport grounds parallel to the Airport Loop, and runs adjacent to the station.^[20]
• An elevated walkway connects the station (at the second floor of the southbound platform's stairwell) with office buildings on Corporate Center Drive, including the Maryland Department of Transportation headquarters.