Parkesburg station

Parkesburg
Parkesburg Amtrak station on the eastbound track 1.
General information
Location	West First Avenue and South Culvert Street Parkesburg, PA 19365
Coordinates	39°57′33″N 75°55′20″W
Line(s)	Keystone
Platforms	2 side platforms
Tracks	3
Other information
Station code	PAR
Passengers
2015	48,563  2.2%
Services
Preceding station   Amtrak   Following station Template:Amtrak stations toward Template:Amtrak stations Template:Amtrak lines Template:Amtrak stations toward Template:Amtrak stations   Former services   PRR Template:PRR stations toward Template:PRR stations Template:PRR lines Template:PRR stations toward Template:PRR stations Preceding station   SEPTA   Following station Terminus Template:SEPTA lines Template:SEPTA stations toward Template:SEPTA stations Amtrak Template:Amtrak stations toward Template:Amtrak stations Template:Amtrak lines Template:Amtrak stations toward Template:Amtrak stations

Parkesburg is an Amtrak train station located between Lancaster and Philadelphia at West First Avenue and South Culvert Street in Parkesburg, Pennsylvania. It is served by most Amtrak Keystone Service trains. A station building exists at the stop, but is not currently used as a ticket office. The distance between Parkesburg and the next westbound station (Lancaster) is the longest distance between stations (23 miles) anywhere within the Pennsylvania section of the Keystone Service.

From circa 1914 through 1972, Parkesburg Tower was located near the Atlantic Avenue bridge. The tower served as a communication/signalling point for westbound (to Lancaster and beyond) trains, and a routing location for eastbound trains entering the Main Line of the Pennsylvania Rail Road. A small service yard was also located nearby for both track service and to assist with sideling switching. Parkesburg Station once was the western-most stop for the SEPTA R5 commuter line (now the Paoli/Thorndale Line). It was truncated to Downingtown in November 1996 because of the need for trains to deadhead to Lancaster to turn around. It has since been re-extended to Thorndale, a few miles west of Downingtown.

In 1984, the station appeared in the movie Witness. Filming took place over a three-day period, and devout fans of the film make annual pilgrimages to the station and other select stops each year.

External links

• Parkesburg, PA – Amtrak
• Parkesburg, PA – Station history at Great American Stations (Amtrak)
• Parkesburg Amtrak Station (USA RailGuide -- TrainWeb)
• Parkesburg, PA (PAR) (Amtrak's Great American Stations)