Alrighty, the last Metro-North entry for now! Welcome to Darien!
So, after taking the 344 to here, it’s pretty much got the same general stuff as most other Metro-North stations. Wait, what’s that? A sign pointing to elevators?! Naturally, I had to do the piss test…..except I can’t. Actually, neither elevator was working. The fact neither elevator works, would mean this station is accessible ONLY ON PAPER. WHAT, WHY, HOW, WHY?! This would NEVER happen on the MBTA!!! Oh yeah, track work necessitated bridge plates over one track. Vending machines can be found on the Grand Central side.
At least the station building was open…with not a lot of seating. Actually, there wasn’t much of anything, aside from a pair of restrooms and a bench. They seemed clean, but why was there an emergency exit and a fire alarm pull station INSIDE the restroom?! That’s a new one! But yeah, I think this one is open primarily because of CTtransit.
The good: Well, the station building being open is one! Granted, it’s in a minimal manner, but it’s better than nothing! It’s also located in Darien’s city center, so there’s that as well. Also, the fact the 344 terminates in the station parking lot, with the 341 running curbside on US-1 is neat.
The bad: The station building just feels empty though! Like, it’s nice that it’s open, but it feels unlively. Also, the 341 not deviating into the station lot feels weird. But, whatever. However, the fact it’s accessible only on paper is BAD.
Nearby points of interest: Darien’s city center seems interesting. The library’s a short bus ride away too, however the area is car dependency hell due to US-1 being largely that.
Transit connections:
Metro-North (New Haven)
CTtransit (341, 344)
Overall, it’s a nice station. It’d be among the best, even, IF THE ELEVATORS WORKED!!! Holy SHIT! That flaw, right there, is enough for me to singlehandedly reduce what otherwise could’ve been an 8.5 or 9. And it’s unfortunate, too.
Rating: 6/10
