Greenwich is the first station in Connecticut along the New Haven Line, and the namesake station of 4 stops serving this wealthy hamlet along Connecticut’s Gold Coast. The current station opened on March 5, 1970 as the centerpiece of Greenwich Plaza, a mixed-use redevelopment of the station area in the downtown core of Greenwich. Off-peak train service to the station is from half-hourly Grand Central to Stamford local trains making all local stops trains. Many peak and reverse-peak trains run non-stop between New York City and Greenwich shortening travel times from Grand Central to as fast as 38 minutes from 57 minutes.
The station is located on an embankment above surrounding streets with two side platforms for the 4 track line. The platforms begin just west of the overpass of Steamboat Road, and end with staircases down to both sides of Arch Street; with the staircase at the westernmost end of the platform switch-backing around itself with four distinct sets of stairs and three intermediate landings. The platforms are connected by an enclosed pedestrian bridge in the middle of the platforms. This overpass has an elevator and staircase down to each platform. It has a green-colored canopy structures (along with clocks embedded in the canopy at the bottom of the stairs along each platform), nearby the platforms each have a flat canopy structure that covers about three car lengths.
The Grand Central-bound platform feels fully elevated from Railroad Avenue located beneath it. The second story of the two-story buildings of Greenwich Plaza run along the platform. This building contains the station’s waiting room and ticket office that closed permanently on September 6, 2016. The second-story waiting room forms a balcony down to the first story below and contains a few benches along with a wide staircase and elevator down to a first-level shopping arcade on each side of the main station entrance down to Railroad Avenue. The main street entrance has a large two-story glass facade allowing plenty of natural light into both levels. The complex feels the era it was built with white colored brick walls and brown tiled floors in the interior. The current high-level platforms feel retrofitted with a walkway running at track level between the modern platform and the buildings, providing access to closed windows and doors directly to the second story of the Greenwich Plaza businesses. The staircases down to Steamboat Road and the eastern side of Arch street end at the level of an original low-level platform before short staircases lead up to the modern high-level.
The Connecticut-bound platform has a steep driveway/street running alongside it that Google names Greenwich Plaza. This street runs parallel to most of the platform with a steep-grade entrance from Arch Street and exit to Steamboat Road (the street is one-way), the only way for passengers to access Steamboat Road from this platform is by taking the steep sidewalk along the street. The platform has staircases directly down from it to both sides of Arch Street. This driveway is at the same-level as the platform and contains a small passenger drop-off and pick-up area, along with a small white building that is the dispatch office of Greenwich Taxi. The taxi company has installed a number of signs along the drop-off area that say Greenwich Taxi only, no Uber and no Lyft. The driveway also provides access to the parking structure inside a 1970s office building opposite the station; between the railroad and I-95.
All Photos: 6 October, 2018
Port Chester 