WASHINGTON — Amtrak has opened a new track and platform at Washington Union Station, expanding the facility’s capacity.
Track 22, on the station’s lower level, previously was a storage track with no passenger access. It will primarily serve Virginia Railway Express commuter trains, as well as Amtrak long distance and Virginia trains. The project required rebuilding of the platform, construction of a new hallway to provide access, and rehabilitation of columns.
“As Amtrak ridership continues to break records, this investment is key to easing rail congestion and improving service reliability at Amtrak’s second busiest station, along the Northeast Corridor, and into Virginia,” Amtrak President Roger Harris said in a press release. “This is yet another example of Amtrak’s commitment to creating a safer, more reliable, and more welcoming environment at this gateway to our nation’s capital.”
Amtrak received a $19 million grant from the Federal Railroad Administration for the project in 2018 [see “Washington Union Station to convert …,” Trains.com, Dec. 19, 2018]. At that time, the project was expected to be completed in 2022.
“The added station and track capacity at Union Station provided by the Track 22 Project enhances the reliability and flexibility of service for all passengers moving through the station, including VRE riders,” said VRE CEO Rich Dalton. “This project is a crucial part of a collaborative effort to modernize this vital transportation hub, and VRE looks forward to the benefits it brings to our riders and the broader rail network.”
Amtrak took over day-to-day management and operation of the station in July 2024 following a court ruling in a case dating to 2022 [see “Amtrak begins management …,” Trains.com, July 30, 2024]. Since, then it has made moves including revising the boarding process to address congestion, adding a new ticketed passenger waiting area, and state-of-good-repair work.
More money spent on the stations but nothing or very little on the trains. Exit the gleaming new station into a filthy, broken-down train. That will get you to your destination, maybe, somewhere between 5 to 12 hours late. Throw in opaque windows, dirty interiors, subpar food, surly crews, little to no communications and locomotives that they can’t keep running and you wonder how Amtrak can get anyone to ride the trains. But, hey, the stations are great.
I suppose you’ll feel better when the new Acelas enter service. Even so, the NEC, VRE, etc. are nothing like what you describe.
This project should give the ability to provide more frequent service so hopefully more people choose rail over short-haul flights and driving on I-95, neither of which are enjoyable and never will be.
$19 million. Seven years. One track platform. Maybe we’ll have new Superliners by the 22nd century.
Optimist!
Exciting news!
Dr. Güntürk Üstün