Union Station

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- When Graham Banks arrived at a gala in Kansas City's refurbished Union Station last week, he immediately looked at the ceilings.Gazing at ceilings is a habit of the Portsmouth, England, native, who is general manager of the Baltimore firm Hayles & Howe, an ornamental plaster enterprise that restored the lofty reaches of grand old buildings such as Union Station.As ceilings go, Banks says, the ones in Kansas City's train station are stunners."I thought the Postal Museum was a big project," he says, referring to the ceilings of the Smithsonian's National Postal Museum in Washington.

In 1835, the first train to reach the nation's capital chugged into the city over the Baltimore and Washington Railroad, as the Washington branch of the Baltimore and Ohio was known then.However, there was probably no more spectacular train arrival in Washington than that of the Pennsylvania Railroad's Federal Express on Jan. 15, 1953.The Boston-Washington overnight train, No. 173, smashed a bumper post, plowed into the station concourse and stopped only after the locomotive fell through the crushed floor into the basement of Union Station.

A commuter train engineer who died in Friday afternoon's fiery collision began his work that morning deep within the industrial heart of South Baltimore.It was a little after the snowy morning rush hour when CSX engineer Richard Orr turned off Fort Avenue onto Ludlow Street and drove his car into the sprawling complex where locomotives are serviced and MARC commuter trains begin their day.For Mr. Orr it was the beginning of another long but routine day on the line where he had worked for nearly a quarter of a century.

Mystery weekendCape May's grand Victorian homes will provide the backdrop for three days of intrigue and suspense, including a "Search for Clues House Tour" and live performances in honor of the works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, creator of Sherlock Holmes. "Victorian Holmes Weekend" begins at 8: 30 p.m. tomorrow with a reception at the Top of the Marq Restaurant. Tour six of Cape May's finest Victorian homes from noon to 3 p.m. Saturday and search for clues to solve a mystery. The game begins to unfold at 10 a.m. Sunday after a Sunday brunch at the Top of the Marq where actors wrap up another adventure.

Sit back and relax. Pick up your complimentary newspaper, Danish pastry and cup of coffee and watch the world go by.It is not commuter heaven, but the new cafe-parlor car attached to selected Maryland Rail Commuter (MARC) trains comes about as close as anything Intrepid Commuter has encountered.On Friday, MARC introduced "The Braddock Inn," a refurbished 1949 Pennsylvania Railroad Pullman that will simply bowl you over. At one end is the parlor: 18 extra-wide reclining swivel seats, MARC's first experiment with first-class accommodations.

The Baltimore firm of Williams Jackson Ewing has landed part of a $6.7 million contract to consult on the renovation of Manhattan's Grand Central Terminal, the 81-year-old Beaux Arts landmark that serves 500,000 commuters daily.Williams Jackson Ewing will again be teamed up with LaSalle Partners of Chicago, reuniting two firms that collaborated on the well-received transformation of Washington's Union Station into a retailing and entertainment center as well as a train station. They also worked together to develop the Towson Commons mixed-use project in Baltimore County.

Maryland's commuter train system is getting a major revamping with a timetable that adds midday and rush hour service, a new stop at Laurel Race Course and a cafe-parlor car that will offer food, drinks and first-class seats.The revised schedule unveiled yesterday by Mass Transit Administration goes into effect Jan. 31. State officials said the changes should make train service more convenient and reliable than in the past."What we're trying to do is enhance our service and create a more flexible schedule," said Maryland Transportation Secretary O. James Lighthizer.

Among the ties that bind the Baltimore and Washington areas, the heavily subsidized MARC commuter train service is one of the most important. On an average weekday, 9,500 Marylanders use its Pennsylvania line, 4,000 take the Camden line and 5,000 patronize the Brunswick Line from Western Maryland.The destination of 95 percent of the riders is Washington's Union Station. For $131 a month, a Baltimore resident can take an unlimited number of rides to the nation's capital 36 rail miles away.

Passenger trains and stations are making a slow comeback.Washington's historic Union Station, since its renovation a few years back, has experienced a spectacular rebirth as a railroad terminal and shopping mall. In New York City, Amtrak is dreaming of a $315 million scheme to duplicate that success by moving its Penn Station from Madison Square Garden to the neo-classic General Post Office building on Eighth Avenue and 31st Street.Nothing as grandiose is happening in Baltimore. But the whole Mount Royal area is going to get a boost when a new 550-car garage is built under Pennsylvania Station and a grand plaza is created to improve vehicle and pedestrian access from Charles and St. Paul streets.

As if the American and National league rosters didn't offer enough for stargazers, a slew of celebrities will be at Camden Yards on Monday for a charity home run hitting contest.Michael Jordan, Patrick Ewing, James Belushi, Bill Murray, Tom Selleck, Dan Marino, Florence Griffith Joyner, Denzel Washington and Ahmad Rashad are to compete in the Upper Deck Celebrity Home Run Challenge for Charity.The contest will take place after the Heroes of Baseball %o old-timers game, with Jordan, Selleck and the others taking their swings against pitchers from the Heroes game from 1:24 to 2 p.m. Signs will be placed in the outfield, marking distances worth $100, $200 and $300, and a home run is worth $500.

When the Metro train pulled into the Silver Spring station late Monday afternoon, Michael Corcoran made a split-second decision that might have saved his life. Rather than hoof to the end car, which would conveniently deposit him beside an escalator at his destination, Union Station, he stepped into the third car and took a seat. Corcoran, 39, just felt happy to be escaping his job as a federal contractor before 5 p.m. for a change. Even with the punishing two-hour-plus commute to Jarrettsville, he figured he'd get home early enough to play with his four kids, maybe even mow the grass.

March 31 was a lousy day to observe the travails of life aboard a MARC train. I took two round-trips - one on the Penn Line and one on the Camden Line - and the rides couldn't have gone more smoothly. Where was the dysfunctional MARC I'd been hearing so much about? I was aboard that day as an exercise in making amends. After a recent column implied that MARC riders were a wee bit more persnickety than the typical transit rider, my in-box was flooded with indignant e-mail. One of my more spirited e-mail discussions evolved from ire to mutual respect to an invitation to meet with a group of MARC commuters over a beer.

The emotion and size of the crowd at Tuesday's presidential inaugural in Washington inspired and awed several prominent Howard County Democrats who attended. But getting there and back home presented more practical concerns. MARC commuter trains, Metro subway cars, private autos and a county car and police driver were the different modes used by four leaders to get to Washington's Union Station on Tuesday, the start of their individual and often very personal strolls to the swearing-in of Barack Obama as the nation's 44th president.

The beautiful Beaux Arts-style Penn Station was constructed in 1911, and it looks like the windows have not been washed since. The Venetian blinds have not been relieved of their crookedness or the boxes and other paraphernalia at the windows removed from their obtrusive locations. This unattractive scene faces all who pass the station going north on Charles Street and south on St. Paul Street heading downtown. Signs designating the adjacent area as the Station North Arts and Entertainment District have been posted.

So you've just said goodbye to your job in Baltimore and have accepted an exciting new position in Washington. The nation's capital beckons, but not its inflated real estate market. You want the best of both worlds: D.C. pay and prestige, Baltimore ambience and affordability. And being a smart cookie, there's no way you're going to pay the exorbitant cost of driving to Washington and parking there every day. Sounds like you're a perfect candidate for MARC. Not so fast, hotshot. Commuter rail isn't for everyone.

My wife, Ann, and I took a trip to Kansas City, Mo., in May to attend a genealogy convention. During our visit, I photographed these two kids dashing through the water fountain on the Crown Center plaza, which is located near Union Station and is noted for its shops and restaurants. William Hughes, Baltimore The Sun welcomes submissions for "My Best Shot." Photos should be accompanied by a description of when and where you took the picture and your name, address and phone number. Submissions cannot be individually acknowledged or returned, and upon submission become the property of The Sun. Write to: Travel Department, The Sun, 501 N. Calvert St., Baltimore 21278, or e-mail Travel@baltsun.

Lori Kantziper of Mount Washington, under the delusion that this column is written by a "local travel expert," sent this query: My 17-year-old son and three friends are going to attend the Washington Wizards game in D.C. on Friday. The game starts at 8 p.m. They really don't want to drive, but I can't think of another way for them to get there. If they take the Metro from a suburb, then there's the time involved of waiting for the return Metro back to the car and then driving home. That could take an extra hour or so. I do remember one of your columns discussing the MTA bus that leaves from BWI and goes to D.C., but I have a feeling that it just runs during commuter hours.

Grammy-winning country music stars Alison Krauss and Union Station will perform Saturday night at Merriweather Post Pavilion. Gates open at 6:30 p.m. The show begins at 8 p.m. Tickets are $30-$75. Lawn admission for children 12 and younger is free with a paying adult. Merriweather Post Pavilion is at 10475 Little Patuxent Parkway, Columbia. For tickets, call 410-547-SEAT or go to ticketmaster.com.

For two cities so close whose fortunes are so entwined, Baltimore and Washington have an abysmal lack of transit connections. Greyhound runs a comprehensive schedule but is a bit pricey for regular commuter use at $12 one way. Its Baltimore station is stuck in an industrial district far from the light rail or subway. The MARC train costs $7 between Baltimore and Washington (with discounts for regular users) but runs a restricted schedule - especially on the Camden Line - with no weekend service.

For two cities so close whose fortunes are so entwined, Baltimore and Washington have an abysmal lack of transit connections. Greyhound runs a comprehensive schedule but is a bit pricey for regular commuter use at $12 one way. Its Baltimore station is stuck in an industrial district far from the light rail or subway. The MARC train costs $7 between Baltimore and Washington (with discounts for regular users) but runs a restricted schedule -- especially on the Camden Line -- with no weekend service.