Rhinecliff station

Rhinecliff, NY
Amtrak intercity rail station
View looking south down platforms from road overpass to former ferry landing.
General information
Location	Hutton and Charles Streets Rhinecliff, NY 12574
Coordinates	41.921277°N 73.951379°W / 41.921277; -73.951379
Owned by	Amtrak
Line(s)	Empire Corridor (Hudson Subdivision)
Platforms	1 island platform
Tracks	2
Construction
Accessible	Yes
Other information
Station code	RHI
History
Opened	1914
Rebuilt	2011
Passengers
2017	201,667  0.4%
Services
Preceding station   Amtrak   Following station Template:Amtrak stations toward Template:Amtrak stations Template:Amtrak lines Template:Amtrak stations toward Template:Amtrak stations Template:Amtrak stations toward Template:Amtrak stations Template:Amtrak lines Template:Amtrak stations toward Template:Amtrak stations Template:Amtrak lines Template:Amtrak stations toward Template:Amtrak stations Template:Amtrak lines Template:Amtrak stations toward Template:Amtrak stations Template:Amtrak lines
Former services Preceding station   Conrail   Following station Template:Conrail stations toward Template:Conrail stations Template:Conrail lines Until 1981 Template:Conrail stations toward Template:Conrail stations NYC Template:NYC stations toward Template:NYC stations Template:NYC lines Template:NYC stations toward Template:NYC stations Template:NYC stations toward Template:NYC stations Template:NYC stations toward Template:NYC stations
U.S. Historic district Contributing property
Official name	Rhinecliff New York Central Railroad Station
Designated	December 14, 1990
Part of	Hudson River Historic District
Reference no.	90002219
Architectural style	Mission-Spanish Revival

Rhinecliff–Kingston, commonly and formerly known as simply Rhinecliff, is a train station located in Rhinebeck, New York. It serves northern Dutchess County and the nearby Kingston area across the Hudson River.

Rhinecliff station is somewhat popular with owners of weekend homes in the area as well as some commuters who prefer Amtrak's service to that of Metro-North's out of Poughkeepsie. These riders, along with students and others going to and from nearby Bard College, made Rhinecliff the 46th-busiest Amtrak station in 2004 with 86,466 boardings. Occasional suggestions to bring Metro-North service to Rhinecliff have been stalled by community opposition and track ownership issues.

Original station building, still in use.

Though the station's name implies an easy connection to Kingston and vicinity, usually only taxicabs serve the station from Kingston. However, it is the closest station to the Kingston–Rhinecliff Bridge. A Kingston–Rhinecliff Ferry began providing service between the two communities in July 2015. The Kingston–Rhinecliff Ferry allows easy access to Kingston from Rhinecliff and vice versa. The next-closest Hudson River crossings are in Hudson, about 30 minutes north; and Poughkeepsie, about the same distance to the south. Both Hudson and Poughkeepsie have their own Amtrak stations.

The station building was built by the New York Central Railroad in 1914, in the Mission-Spanish Revival style similar to the next station down the line at Hyde Park. Like much of the hamlet of Rhinecliff, it is a contributing property to the Hudson River Historic District.

Amtrak service

All trains heading southbound from Rhinecliff–Kingston terminate at Penn Station in New York City, while all northbound trains besides the Lake Shore Limited stop at Hudson and Albany–Rensselaer before diverting.

• Adirondack to Montreal
• Empire Service to Poughkeepsie, Westchester County (Croton-on-Hudson/Yonkers) and New York or Schenectady, Syracuse, Buffalo, and Niagara Falls
• Ethan Allen Express to Rutland or New York
• Lake Shore Limited to Chicago
• Maple Leaf to Syracuse, Rochester, Buffalo, and Toronto or New York

Station layout

The station has one low-level island platform that serves two tracks. Track 1 is normally used by northbound trains heading to Albany and beyond and Track 2 is normally used by trains heading south to New York. Passengers board/disembark the trains using stools that the conductors and station staff connect to the train. There is also an unused second platform, connected to the first via an overpass.

Rhinecliff-Kingston station platform

1F	Crossover	Transfer between platforms
P
	Track 1	← Adirondack, Empire Service, Ethan Allen Express, Maple Leaf, Lake Shore Limited toward New York–Penn Station (Poughkeepsie)
	Island platform, doors will open on the left or right
	Track 2	Adirondack toward Montreal (Hudson) → Empire Service toward Albany–Rensselaer or Niagara Falls, NY (Hudson) → Ethan Allen Express toward Rutland (Hudson) → Maple Leaf toward Toronto (Hudson) → Lake Shore Limited toward Chicago (Albany–Rensselaer) →
	Street level	Exit/entrance, station house, parking

External links

• Media related to Rhinecliff–Kingston (Amtrak station) at Wikimedia Commons
• Rhinecliff-Kingston – Amtrak
• Rhinecliff-Kingston – Station history at Great American Stations (Amtrak)
• Rhinecliff (RHI); Great American Stations (Amtrak)
• Kingston-Rhinecliff Amtrak Station (USA Rail Guide – Train Web)