Roanoke station (Virginia)

Roanoke
Roanoke station in December 2017
Location	55 Norfolk Avenue SW Roanoke, Virginia
Coordinates	37°16′23.77″N 79°56′32.45″W / 37.2732694°N 79.9423472°W / 37.2732694; -79.9423472Coordinates: 37°16′23.77″N 79°56′32.45″W / 37.2732694°N 79.9423472°W / 37.2732694; -79.9423472
Line(s)	Norfolk Southern Railway Christiansburg District
Platforms	1 side platform
Tracks	3
Connections	Greyhound Lines SmartWay Bus Valley Metro
Construction
Disabled access	Yes
Other information
Station code	RNK
History
Opened	1857 March 24, 1975 October 31, 2017
Closed	April 30, 1971 October 1, 1979
Rebuilt	1905, 1949
Services
Preceding station   Amtrak   Following station Terminus Northeast Regional Lynchburg toward Boston South Station or Springfield
Former services Preceding station   Amtrak   Following station Christiansburg toward Tri-State Station Hilltopper Bedford toward Boston South Station Christiansburg toward Chicago Mountaineer Bedford toward Norfolk Norfolk and Western Christiansburg toward Cincinnati Norfolk – Cincinnati Vinton toward Norfolk Christiansburg toward Columbus Norfolk – Columbus Walton toward Bristol Bristol – Roanoke Terminus Boones Mill toward Winston-Salem Winston-Salem – Roanoke Terminus Hagerstown – Roanoke Hollins toward Hagerstown

Roanoke is a train station in Roanoke, Virginia. It is served by Amtrak's Northeast Regional line beginning on October 31, 2017 — the first rail service to Roanoke since the Hilltopper was discontinued in 1979.

By the time of its 1852 incorporation, the town of Big Lick was already established as a transportation hub for western Virginia thanks to its position on the Great Wagon Road and the Wilderness Trail. The Virginia and Tennessee Railroad was completed from Lynchburg to Big Lick that same year, and on to Bristol in 1856. The Virginia and Tennessee became part of the Atlantic, Mississippi and Ohio Railroad in 1870, which itself emerged from bankruptcy and was renamed as the Norfolk and Western Railway (N&W) in 1882.

The Shenandoah Valley Railroad was completed to the town (newly renamed Roanoke) from Hagerstown, Maryland in 1882, and acquired by the N&W in 1890. Its unbuilt southern section was eventually completed as the Roanoke and Southern Railroad (the 'Punkin Vine') in 1892 and immediately leased to the N&W.

In 1905, the N&W constructed a station to replace the half-century-old depot.

The Virginian Railway was completed in 1909; a competitor to the N&W, it ran along a separate route along the Roanoke River. The Virginian constructed its own Roanoke station 1 mile (1.6 km) to the south of the N&W station; it served the Virginian until the end of passenger service in 1956.

The last train from Roanoke south to Winston-Salem on the 'Punkin Vine' was on February 18, 1961. Through sleepers were then still operated between Roanoke and New York (via Hagerstown and Harrisburg) on the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) and the N&W. The PRR discontinued service between Harrisburg and Hagerstown on February 25, 1962, and the N&W between Hagerstown and Waynesboro on June 10; the sleepers were rerouted via the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad. The last sleeper between Roanoke and Waynesboro ran on October 27, 1962, although local service continued until February 1963.