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    1. Rail

    MD: New Passneger Information Displays are the Latest Improvements at Baltimore Penn Station

    June 10, 2014
    Amtrak-MTA partnership continues to deliver passenger benefits.
    Related To: Maryland Transit Administration (MTA)

    Amtrak, in partnership with the Maryland Transit Administration (MTA), has deployed new, electronic, ADA-compliant passenger information displays (PIDs) at Baltimore Penn Station.

    The signs communicate real-time train status, general boarding announcements and security messages in both audible and visual formats.

    More than 30 PIDs were installed on the platforms for tracks four through seven as well as the concourse of the historic station. The $1.8 million project, which began in July 2013 and was completed this May, was co-funded by Amtrak and the MTA through the Joint Benefits Agreement between the two agencies.

    “This project is another example of the wide-ranging benefits available to passengers as a result of our partnership with the MTA,” said James Hengst, Amtrak Program Director, Passenger Experience. “Improvements such as this are especially beneficial to our deaf customers and customers with hearing or vision loss, though all passengers will benefit from improved communications through the new system.”

    “We are pleased to continue partnering with Amtrak on projects that benefit both Amtrak’s customers and our MARC Train passengers,” said MTA Administrator and CEO Robert Smith. “These new displays highlight the O’Malley-Brown Administration’s ongoing efforts to improve and enhance riders’ experience, which will help us meet the Governor’s goal of doubling transit ridership by 2020.”

    This is the second and final phase of a project to upgrade the train information and visual messaging functionality at the station. Phase 1 was completed in 2012 when Baltimore Penn Station was one of three Maryland stations selected to pilot Amtrak’s standardized ADA-compliant PIDs system.

    $9.5 million worth of improvements have been completed at Baltimore Penn Station in the last four years delivering new restrooms, improved platform lighting, plaza enhancements and other safety and security measures. An additional $4 million worth of projects are underway or in design.