Sanford station is a railroad terminal in Sanford, Florida. It is the southern terminus for Amtrak's Auto Train which runs between this station and Lorton, Virginia. The original facility, which opened in 1971, was an older and smaller facility than the terminal at Lorton. Currently, the Auto Train loads its passengers on two tracks in Sanford, as no one track is long enough to accommodate all of the passenger railcars. Sanford's operation is also unique in that a railroad crossing runs through the middle of the rail yard.In 2010, Amtrak and the State of Florida replaced the older station with a new facility that can accommodate larger numbers of passengers more comfortably. Designed by d+A design + Architecture, LLC of Yardley, Pennsylvania, the current station has a waiting room for 600 travelers, ticket counter, café, restrooms, and a gift shop. The building also incorporates energy-saving features such as glass coatings that minimize solar gain and energy efficient HVAC and lighting systems. A portion of the old station abutting the new structure was reconfigured into administrative offices.HistoryThe station once served trains run by the now defunct Auto-Train Corporation. It owned and operated the station from 1971 to 1981 when the Auto-Train Corporation fell into bankruptcy forcing service to end. The station was reopened in 1983 when Amtrak revived the Auto Train service.The original station building was replaced by a new structure that opened on October 18, 2010. Construction of the new $10.5 million station building began on May 18, 2009 after the decision was made by Amtrak to replace the former building, which was damaged by hurricanes in 2004.
