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DeLand (Amtrak station)
Encyclopedia
The DeLand
Amtrak
station is located several miles west of downtown DeLand, at the location formerly known as DeLand Junction. DeLand Station was originally built in 1918, and stood across from the former Volusia County Fairgrounds. When the Jacksonville, Tampa and Key West Railroad, and then the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad
ran the line past this station, they also ran passenger service to downtown DeLand. The terminus of this spur was in downtown DeLand at a hotel named College Arms. There is a public housing high-rise with the same name currently on the site. The track proceeded several blocks further to some local businesses and was graded all the way to Lake Helen, FL where it would have connected to the Atlantic and Western RR but track was never laid. The station was acquired by Amtrak, and restored in 1988, although the second track has not been maintained properly. Up until 2005 when it was truncated to New Orleans, the Sunset Limited also stopped here. The station also provides Amtrak Thruway Motorcoach
service to Daytona Beach, Florida
.
There is a domestic cat that lives at the station and is cared for by station staff. Whenever a train comes, the feline has been noted to come out of its shelter, walk out to the platform and greet the train. It then proceeds to hop on the baggage transport cart and rides down to the luggage car on the train with the station master. Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
students have aptly named the cat as "Station Cat".
commuter rail system by 2015. This will lead to resumed maintenance of the neglected second track along with other upgrades to the station. The station will see the addition of a 184 park and ride lot and a bus drop off area.
DeLand, Florida
DeLand is the county seat of Volusia County, Florida. In 2006, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated the city's population to be 24,375. It is part of the Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had an estimated population of 436,575 in 2006...
Amtrak
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
station is located several miles west of downtown DeLand, at the location formerly known as DeLand Junction. DeLand Station was originally built in 1918, and stood across from the former Volusia County Fairgrounds. When the Jacksonville, Tampa and Key West Railroad, and then the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad
Atlantic Coast Line Railroad
The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad was an American railroad that existed between 1900 and 1967, when it merged with the Seaboard Air Line Railroad, its long-time rival, to form the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad...
ran the line past this station, they also ran passenger service to downtown DeLand. The terminus of this spur was in downtown DeLand at a hotel named College Arms. There is a public housing high-rise with the same name currently on the site. The track proceeded several blocks further to some local businesses and was graded all the way to Lake Helen, FL where it would have connected to the Atlantic and Western RR but track was never laid. The station was acquired by Amtrak, and restored in 1988, although the second track has not been maintained properly. Up until 2005 when it was truncated to New Orleans, the Sunset Limited also stopped here. The station also provides Amtrak Thruway Motorcoach
Amtrak Thruway Motorcoach
Thruway Motorcoach is Amtrak's system of Amtrak-owned intercity coaches, locally contracted transit buses, through-ticketed local bus routes and taxi services to connect Amtrak train stations to areas not served by its railroads...
service to Daytona Beach, Florida
Daytona Beach, Florida
Daytona Beach is a city in Volusia County, Florida, USA. According to 2008 U.S. Census Bureau estimates, the city has a population of 64,211. Daytona Beach is a principal city of the Deltona – Daytona Beach – Ormond Beach, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area, which the census bureau estimated had...
.
There is a domestic cat that lives at the station and is cared for by station staff. Whenever a train comes, the feline has been noted to come out of its shelter, walk out to the platform and greet the train. It then proceeds to hop on the baggage transport cart and rides down to the luggage car on the train with the station master. Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University is a private university in the US specializing in aviation and aerospace engineering. It teaches the science, practice, and business of aviation and aerospace. Called "The Harvard of the Sky" by Time Magazine in 1979, Embry-Riddle has a history dating back to...
students have aptly named the cat as "Station Cat".
Future SunRail Service
DeLand station is planned to be the final northern terminus of the planned SunRailSunRail
SunRail is a planned commuter rail system in the greater Orlando, Florida area, linking Poinciana to DeLand through Downtown Orlando...
commuter rail system by 2015. This will lead to resumed maintenance of the neglected second track along with other upgrades to the station. The station will see the addition of a 184 park and ride lot and a bus drop off area.