ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The parent agencies of Virginia Railway Express have approved a $155 million agreement to help purchase the commuter operator’s Manassas Line from Norfolk Southern.
The nonprofit news site Virginia Mercury reports the boards of the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission and the Potomac and Rappahannock River Transportation Commission approved the agreement in separate meetings on Thursday, March 6. The deal calls for six equal payments to the Virginia Passenger Rail Authority, the last of which is projected for July 10, 2029.
VRPA negotiated purchase of the line from Alexandria to Bristow, Va., last summer as part of a $599 million deal, including the VRE contribution [see “Virginia, Norfolk Southern greenlight …,” Trains News Wire, Aug. 28, 2024. VRE will control and dispatch approximately 24 miles of track. That deal also rescinded an earlier agreement to purchase 28 miles between Roanoke and the New River Valley, and included a deal to allow passenger trains to operate over a former Norfolk & Western line to Christiansburg, Va.
The route is used by eight weekday VRE round trips as well as three Amtrak round trips — two to Roanoke, Va., and the New York-New Orleans Crescent.
“This is a long-term investment towards the future,” said Sarah Bagley, vice chair of the Northern Virginia board and chair of the VRE operations board, at Thursday’s meeting. Both agencies characterized the purchase as critical to VRE operations present and future.
The purchase also includes Alexandria’s Seminary Yard, where VRE will construct a midday layover facility.
“The property acquisition piece of this was not something that we had maybe contemplated a couple of years ago,” VRE Chief Financial Officer Mark Schofield told the Mercury, “but we are making a very positive trade in terms of the cost of the midday storage yard.”
Now we just need VRE to open the station at Potomac Shores please!!
Why would NS sell beyond the junction at Manassas? They will regret not owning that key short piece to access their B-Line. The Manassas Yard should have been the purchase end point. Unless NS plans to constrict a bypass of Bristow to the B-Line. Coal has never been a major part of the traffic anywhere on the Southern Main between Atlanta and Alexandria.
In the 4th paragraph where Amtrak service over this line is discussed, you forgot to mention the Cardinal, which uses the line 3 days a week (Wednesday, Friday & Sunday).
Where was Virginia when the Washington & Old Dominion was facing abandonment?
They were nice enough to turn it into a linear playground for adults. So it’s just a matter of putting the tracks back.🙄
Keep going to Front Royal.
Heck, VRE should buy the entire Washington District and lease access back to NS on the rest of the line. NS is extremely desperate for cash these days, and without coal, I can’t imagine the line is all that profitable.
And then VRE could use the proceeds from the leases to fund electrification of the passenger segment…
Nice try. Lease payments might be enough to buy an extension cord.
Creative accouting, Simon. You could qualify as CFO of any governmental agency in America or half the “private sector” corporations.
NS may be amidst a good but of Drama these days but hardly struggling for cash. Regarding coal, if NG prices increase we better have some modern flex fuel coal and NG powerplants ready so we can afford power. Windmills and Solar will never be the answer.