Lynchburg-Kemper Street Station (Virginia)

Kemper Street
Nightime view from station platform
Location	825 Kemper Street Lynchburg, Virginia  United States
Coordinates	37°24′23″N 79°09′26″W / 37.4064°N 79.1571°W / 37.4064; -79.1571Coordinates: 37°24′23″N 79°09′26″W / 37.4064°N 79.1571°W / 37.4064; -79.1571
Owned by	City of Lynchburg
Line(s)	Crescent   Northeast Regional
Platforms	1 island platform
Tracks	3
Connections	Greyhound GLTC
Construction
Parking	Available
Disabled access	Yes
Other information
Station code	LYH
History
Opened	1912
Rebuilt	2002
Traffic
Passengers (FY2013)	93,337 annually  7% (Amtrak)
Services
Preceding station   Amtrak   Following station Danville toward New Orleans Crescent Charlottesville toward New York City Terminus Northeast Regional Charlottesville toward Boston South Station Roanoke Beginning late 2017 Terminus

Kemper Street station, also known as Lynchburg station, is an intermodal transit station in Lynchburg, Virginia. It serves Amtrak, the United States' national passenger rail system, as well as Greater Lynchburg Transit Company buses and Greyhound Lines. It is located at 825 Kemper Street.

Kemper Street station was built in 1912 by the Southern Railway to house their passenger and freight operations in the Lynchburg area. A three-story structure built into a hillside, the top floor fronts Kemper Street while on the opposite side the track level ground floor fronts the rail platforms. Originally included but later removed was an elevated walkway extending from a street level passenger lobby across the tracks. Stairs descended from the walkway to the platforms, two stories below. A freight depot was located in the ground floor. As it was not the city's only railway facility, the "Kemper Street" name was used to clearly identify it among Lynchburg's other train stations. Over many decades to follow, the station was a stop for Southern Railway passenger trains. When Southern Railway discontinued passenger services in 1979, the operation of their passenger routes and stations, including Kemper Street station, was relinquished to Amtrak.

After years of continued use and neglect the signs of disrepair at the station were becoming increasingly apparent. The Lynchburg City Council determined that renovations would be necessary to save the city-owned facility and ensure its future use. They spearheaded a redevelopment project budgeted at over $3 million, funding for which was provided by the city, commonwealth, and federal government sources including Amtrak. Extensive work began in 2000 to update the facility, but with an emphasis on maintaining period lighting and finishes, and preserving the station's historic character.

In April, 2002, the city of Lynchburg celebrated the opening of the newly restored Kemper Street station. The restoration allowed the facility to take on the new role of intermodal station, housing both rail and bus services. Amtrak operations were moved to the ground-floor platform level, left vacant since the station no longer serviced freight trains. This allowed for Greyhound Lines to establish a bus terminal in the vacated street-level passenger facility, thus centralizing Lynchburg's primary services for intercity passenger travel under one roof.