A long-shuttered rail station in Fresno, Calif., will be renovated to serve as the city’s high speed rail (HSR) station as part of the California High-Speed Rail Authority system, the nation’s first high speed rail project. California’s HSR system will eventually link more than 800 miles of rail, served by up to 24 stations.
Design firm Page & Turnbull will work on the historic station, with a focus on accessibility updates, upgrades to meet modern fire and life-safety codes and structural and seismic standards, and the rehabilitation of key architectural features of the historic Queen Anne-style depot, built of red brick with a slate bellcast hip-roof and cupolas. Foster + Partners will design a new intermodal station at the site.
The new HSR hub will connect the historic transit depot’s former passenger and freight train stations, as realized through extensive, preliminary site surveys and 3D modeling. Attention to strengthening the buildings’ structural and seismic integrity is a priority, potentially through discrete structural approaches that will preserve the buildings’ original brick walls, such as the integration of obscured concrete columns.
The historic train depot is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. It opened in 1872 as the Central Pacific Railroad station and was later developed into the Southern Pacific Depot, whose service ceased in the early 1970s. The site includes the historic passenger depot, freight depot/railway express agency building, and Pullman Shed.
As a part of the Phase 1, 119-mile Central Valley segment of the California HSR system that also includes Northern and Southern California segments, the 65-mile project section between Merced and Fresno link the Central Valley and Silicon Valley with stations in downtown Fresno and downtown Merced. The Central Valley segment will connect San Francisco to Los Angeles in less than three hours, with service expected to begin in 2027.
When complete, the 800-mile system from Sacramento to San Diego, will include an anticipated 24 HSR stations, with arriving and departing trains travelling at some 200 miles per hour. Phase 1’s 520-mile segment consists of the San Francisco/Merced to Los Angeles/Anaheim section.
Owner and/or developer: California High-Speed Rail Authority
Architect of record for intermodal station: Foster + Partners
Architect of record for historic station: Page & Turnbull
Engineers for intermodal station: Arup
Related Stories
Transit Facilities | Jun 12, 2019
Gensler, Corgan reveal their design concepts for Uber Air Skyports
Eight firms in total revealed concepts for the first fully considered and technically feasible Skyports.
Transit Facilities | May 15, 2019
Damen Avenue at Lake Street transportation facility returns train access to neighborhood
A public art piece created by artist Folayemi Wilson will be just one of the eye-catching features of the new Damen Green Line Station in Chicago.
Transit Facilities | Sep 26, 2018
Port Canaveral’s new Cruise Terminal 3 will be the largest project in its history
Once completed, Carnival’s new 180,000-ton ship will homeport in the new Cruise Terminal 3.
Office Buildings | Jul 17, 2018
Transwestern report: Office buildings near transit earn 65% higher lease rates
Analysis of 15 major metros shows the average rent in central business districts was $43.48/sf for transit-accessible buildings versus $26.01/sf for car-dependent buildings.
Transit Facilities | Jun 8, 2018
High-speed rail service now connects Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and West Palm Beach
The privately owned and managed system could create new business districts for these cities.
Transit Facilities | May 3, 2018
Completed Raleigh Union Station will serve as a catalyst for the city’s Warehouse District
Clearscapes and STV designed the adaptive reuse project.
Transit Facilities | Apr 12, 2018
Approaching the transit conversation with local perspectives
In every city with transit, there are some success stories, some challenges and plenty of lessons learned.
Transit Facilities | Mar 30, 2018
Zaha Hadid’s King Abdullah Financial District Metro Station incorporates futuristic façade
The façade required the creation of new algorithms by Newtecnic.
Giants 400 | Nov 7, 2017
Top 25 transit construction firms
Skanska USA, Webcor Builders, and AECOM top BD+C’s ranking of the nation’s largest transit sector contractors and construction management firms, as reported in the 2017 Giants 300 Report.
Giants 400 | Nov 6, 2017
Top 15 transit engineering firms
AECOM, STV, and Arup top BD+C’s ranking of the nation’s largest transit sector engineering and EA firms, as reported in the 2017 Giants 300 Report.
