Tacoma station (1984)

This article is about the former Amtrak station in Tacoma, Washington. For the original Amtrak station, see Union Station (Tacoma, Washington). For the current Amtrak station, see Tacoma Dome Station. For other uses, see Tacoma Station.

Tacoma was an Amtrak train station in Tacoma, Washington, United States. It was served by Amtrak's Cascades and Coast Starlight lines. The building was constructed in 1984 to a standard design that Amtrak developed in the 1970s and used at locations throughout the country for the next two decades. The station was replaced by a new Amtrak facility at Tacoma Dome Station, an existing commuter rail and light rail hub, that opened in 2017; however, it was reopened 24 hours after closing due to the 2017 Washington train derailment on the new line to the new station.^[3][4] The station remained in service until the Point Defiance Bypass was reopened to Amtrak trains on November 18, 2021.

Tacoma, WA
General information
Location	1001 Puyallup Avenue Tacoma, WA 98421[1] United States
Coordinates	47.2420°N 122.4206°W / 47.2420; -122.4206
Owned by	Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway
Platforms	1 side platform
Tracks	1
Construction
Parking	Free
Accessible	Yes
Other information
Station code	TAC
History
Opened	June 14, 1984; December 18, 2017 (reopened)
Closed	December 17, 2017; November 18, 2021
Passengers
2016	118,832[2]  0.52%
Former services
Preceding station Amtrak Following station Olympia-Lacey toward Los Angeles Coast Starlight Seattle Terminus Olympia-Lacey toward Eugene Amtrak Cascades Tukwila toward Vancouver, British Columbia Seattle Terminus Pioneer Discontinued in 1997 Olympia-Lacey toward Chicago
Location

Construction

The station was constructed to replace Union Station, as the planned construction of the Tacoma Spur (Interstate 705) would remove its tracks, preventing passenger trains from accessing Union Station.^[5] Ground broke on the new station's building in 1983.^[5] It would cost $953,000 to construct using funds from the state government to reimburse the Burlington Northern Railroad for the retirement of Union Station and relocation of nearby tracks.^[6] Amtrak service began at the new station on June 14, 1984.^[7]

Description

The one-story building was constructed to design 75C of the Amtrak Standard Stations Program.^[5] Features of the Tacoma station which were standard for stations of the Amtrak Standard Stations Program included brick walls, floor-to-ceiling windows, and a flat cantilevered roof.^[8][5] The building measured 81 by 45 feet (25 by 14 m), and was designed to be expandable, should demand warrant it.^[5] It was designed to accommodate 75 people at a time, with seating for 48 people.^[5]

Replacement

WSDOT adopted long-term plans in the 1990s to relocate the Amtrak station to a new hub at Freighthouse Square, where Sound Transit had begun construction of the Tacoma Dome commuter rail station.^[9] After a plan from 2013 to build a new station in the west end of the building was rejected due to public criticism of the design, the state of Washington in 2015 completed a new design, placing the station in the center of the building.^[10] In March 2016, the state reached an agreement to purchase the required part of the building and demolish it to make way for the new station, with construction to begin in June 2016.^[11]

Amtrak trains were rerouted away from Tacoma's shoreline and onto a new inland cutoff route, the Point Defiance Bypass, which opened with the new station on December 18, 2017. The station is located in the Freighthouse Square building, a former warehouse rebuilt into a collection of small businesses and eateries near the Tacoma Dome. The trains were re-routed back onto the original route after a major derailment on the bypass near DuPont, Washington on that same day.^[12]

The Puyallup Avenue station remained in use until the Point Defiance Bypass was re-opened to Amtrak service on November 18, 2021.^[13][14]

Boardings and alightings

Year	2011[15]	2012[16]	2013[17]	2014[18]	2015[19]	2016[2]
Total	124,252	123,063	126,027	125,984	118,223	118,832
YOY Difference	-	-1,189	2,964	-43	-7,761	609
YOY Difference %	-	-0.96%	2.41%	-0.03%	-6.16%	0.52%

References

1. "Tacoma, WA (TAC)". amtrak.com. Amtrak. Retrieved January 11, 2014.
2. "Amtrak Fact Sheet, Fiscal Year 2016, State of Washington" (PDF). amtrak.com. Amtrak. November 2016. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
3. "Amtrak trains will revert to old route Tuesday, one cancelled". seattlepi.com. Retrieved December 19, 2017.
4. "Amtrak Service Disruption South of Seattle" (Press release). Amtrak. December 19, 2017. Archived from the original on December 20, 2017. Retrieved December 19, 2017.
5. Lizberg, Carl (December 5, 1983). "Amtrak to leave turn-of-century grandeur behind". The News Tribune. p. C9. Retrieved December 23, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
6. Turner, Joseph (January 7, 1984). "State and railroad agree on land sale". The News Tribune. p. A1. Retrieved December 23, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
7. Workman, Dave (June 15, 1984). "Hello, goodbye: Railroad terminals open, close". The News Tribune. p. B2. Retrieved December 23, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "The Amtrak Standard Stations Program". Amtrak History & Archives. March 4, 2013. Retrieved October 6, 2014.
9. Joseph, Turner (August 4, 1998). "Commuter rail may hasten new Amtrak route". The News Tribune. p. A1.
10. "Tacoma Amtrak station final design ready for public review". The News Tribune. October 25, 2015. Retrieved March 30, 2016.
11. "Tacoma Amtrak station construction to begin in June after deal with Freighthouse Square owner". The News Tribune. March 24, 2016. Retrieved March 30, 2016.
12. Sailor, Craig (September 23, 2023). "Tacoma's former Amtrak station trashed, burned, covered in graffiti. Who's responsible?". The News Tribune.
13. Sailor, Craig (November 18, 2021). "Amtrak resumes service on Point Defiance Bypass route where 3 died in 2017". The News Tribune. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
14. "Cascades Service to Resume on the Point Defiance Bypass" (Press release). Amtrak. November 9, 2021. Retrieved November 9, 2021.
15. "Amtrak Fact Sheet, Fiscal Year 2011: State of Washington" (PDF). Amtrak. November 2011. p. 1. Retrieved January 6, 2015.
16. "Amtrak Fact Sheet, Fiscal Year 2012: State of Washington" (PDF). Amtrak. November 2012. p. 1. Retrieved January 6, 2015.
17. "Amtrak Fact Sheet, Fiscal Year 2013: State of Washington" (PDF). Amtrak. November 2013. p. 1. Retrieved January 6, 2015.
18. "Amtrak Fact Sheet, Fiscal Year 2014: State of Washington" (PDF). Amtrak. November 2014. p. 1. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
19. "Amtrak Fact Sheet, Fiscal Year 2015: State of Washington" (PDF). Amtrak. November 2015. p. 1. Retrieved January 12, 2016.