Rail News

Starting as soon as October, local travelers will have a second daily opportunity to hop on the Amtrak in Culpeper and ride to Washington, D.C.

The new service, originating in Lynchburg and stopping in Charlottesville before Culpeper, is being made possible through a public-private partnership with the state of Virginia, Norfolk Southern Railway and Amtrak.

Beyond Culpeper, the train will stop in Manassas, Burke, Alexandria, L’Enfant Plaza and Union Station, with an option to continue to New York City, according to longtime rail advocate Meredith Richards, founder and chairman of C’ville Rail, organized in 2005.

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A who’s-who list of political leaders and executives filled a tent at the Kemper Street Station in Lynchburg on Wednesday to watch Gov. Timothy M. Kaine and Norfolk Southern Chairman Wick Moorman sign Virginia’s first agreement to support passenger trains.

“We are entering a new era” in passenger rail service, Kaine said, adding that $8.4 billion in federal stimulus money will boost rail transit nationwide. 

General Assembly members from Charlottesville, Roanoke and Lynchburg, plus most of Lynchburg’s City Council, and Amtrak executives were among approximately 90 people who gathered on a rainy afternoon for a glimpse of what a new train to Washington will look like.

Seizing a moment in history under a president who favors funding railroads to stimulate the economy and move both freight and passengers, Virginia Congressman Rick Boucher (D-VA, 9th) appears poised to secure cash for once-just-a-dream “Steel Interstate,” something supporters believe would pull trucks off Interstate 81 and create vast transportation efficiencies.

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With the Tide under construction in Norfolk and new interest in the project from Virginia Beach, 2009 will be a defining year for light rail in Hampton Roads. But there's another opportunity racing toward the region: a chance to connect to a national high-speed rail system.

The idea of extending high-speed service to cover the entire East Coast has been rattling around Washington, D.C., for more than a decade, but without the dollars needed to widen, straighten and relocate tracks to accommodate faster trains.

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Former Attorney General Bob McDonnell kicked off his campaign for governor yesterday by promising to focus on job creation in a state that is hurting economically.

"Whether I'm in Leesburg or Lee County, there is not a day that goes by where I don't see the pain and anxiety this economy is causing," he said at a rally in Henrico County. He also spoke at rallies in Annandale and Virginia Beach; he has lived in all three places.

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Last Thursday was a momentous day for enhanced passenger rail advocates in Virginia: The Commonwealth Transportation Board OK’d spending $25.2 million over the next three years to run two new trains to Washington, D.C.

Under the three-year pilot program, two trains a day will between Lynchburg and Washington and Richmond and Washington, operated under the aegis of Amtrak.

For advocates of enhanced intercity passenger rail service in Central and Southwest Virginia, it was a vote to celebrate.

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Badger named rail, transit agency director

Charles M. "Chip" Badger has been appointed director of the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation by Gov. Timothy M. Kaine.

Badger, 58, of Richmond, has served as the department's acting director since Dec. 12.

He was previously deputy director of the state rail and transit agency, which has a $510 million annual budget.

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The Fredericksburg region and the Greater Washington metropolitan area have an opportunity gain from the realignment of existing rail corridors and the establishment of new rail corridors. National security, transportation efficiency, and land use--how we grow our communities in the future--would benefit from a new rail corridor.

Creating and realigning major rail corridors is a long-term investment in our future. Although this project will require many years to complete, application of "stimulus funds" toward expedited planning and rights-of-way acquisition would be a prudent investment and generate more tangible returns than alternative uses.

If all goes as planned, two new Amtrak trains will start service in Lynchburg on Oct. 1and in Richmond on Dec. 15.

The state rail agency anticipates that 51,000 travelers a year will use the Lynchburg service and 42,000 passengers a year will take advantage of the new Richmond train, which will originate at the Staples Mill Station.

While firm schedules and fares have yet to be worked out, the Lynchburg train will leave the Kemper Street Station about 7:45 a.m. and reach Union Station 11:20-11:30 a.m., the department said, and depart Washington about 5 p.m. and return to Lynchburg at about 8:30 p.m.

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Stafford County officials want Spotsylvania County to know that when it comes to Virginia Railway Express, there are no more free rides.

In fact, the Stafford Board of Supervisors voted late Tuesday night to send their neighbors to the south a bill for $295,060 for the nearly 1,000 Spotsylvania riders who take the commuter rail service to the Washington area.

Locally, Stafford and the city of Fredericksburg are VRE members and collect a 2 percent gas tax to subsidize the trains for their residents.

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