The Downingtown Station is located on Lancaster Pike and Stuart Avenue in Downingtown Borough, Chester County.  This station is currently a stop on Amtrak’s Keystone Corridor Service route and station stop of the SEPTA R-5.  There is no ticket office or other Amtrak services provided at the station.  This station is in SEPTA fare zone 5, and is 32 track miles from Suburban Station and 72 track miles from Harrisburg, PA.  According to Amtrak, the number of passengers using Downingtown Station has nearly doubled over the past four years.

Much of the community in the immediate area is built out or located within the floodplain.  The neighborhood to the south is residential and to the north the neighborhood is residential with the exception of commercial uses along Lancaster Avenue.  There is a large vacant area west of the station that the Borough has designated for redevelopment, but firm development plans have not been implemented.  The area is part of a Keystone Opportunity Zone to help encourage redevelopment.  The plan is to eventually provide commercial and office opportunities along Lancaster Avenue, housing opportunities to the areas south and a pedestrian concourse to the areas east of the station, using the existing Downingtown Station as an anchor of this proposed redevelopment.  Another development proposed to make a connection to the station is a planned development named “The River Station”.  The goal of the River Station is to re-develop the former Sonoco Paper Factory site into a mixed-use moderate density transit oriented design providing direct access to the Downingtown Train Station.

2008 Ridership – 50,255

Station Area

• A 500-foot long high-level platform with a lighted canopy
• A ticket office/waiting room facility with restrooms
• Passenger amenities (ticket kiosk, vending machines, newsstand/news racks, pay telephones)
• Passenger information (information displays, public address system)
• Security systems (cameras, call box)
• Designation of passenger car and taxi pick-up/drop-off areas

Pedestrian Access and Area Considerations

• Trailblazer and standard Amtrak signage along Lancaster Avenue and Viaduct Avenue
• Replace the existing pedestrian tunnel with a larger ADA-compliant tunnel.  The tunnel should be 11-feet wide and seven feet high and adjacent to the station to facilitate movement between the eastbound and westbound platform areas
• Install an elevator adjacent to the eastbound side of the station to provide access from the parking area to the platform
• Pedestrian ramps to the eastbound platform in case of a power failure to the elevator
• Improve pedestrian accessibility by widening sidewalks, installing curb cuts and crosswalks along Lancaster Avenue and Viaduct Avenue