Governor Ralph Northam has signed a development project deal for rail development worth US$3.7 billion with Amtrak and CSX Transportation that will allow for a dramatic expansion of passenger and commuter rail in Virginia while breaking loose a major East Coast chokepoint. The deal includes the construction of a US$1.9 billion double-track passenger-rail-dedicated bridge over the Potomac River. Virginia-owned, it will be built adjacent to the existing CSX-owned and operated Long Bridge, the only freight and passenger rail bridge connecting Virginia and Washington, D.C. CSX has also acquired 386 miles of the railroad right-of-way and 223 miles of track at a cost of US$525 million. The remaining US$3.2 billion will be used to fund infrastructure projects to expand rail capacity between Richmond and Washington.
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Double the number of Virginia-supported Amtrak trains, providing nearly hourly service. The Commonwealth and Amtrak are entering into a long-term partnership for six new state-supported daily round-trips, and Amtrak will serve as Virginia’s exclusive provider of intercity passenger rail along the I-95 corridor for at least 30 years. Amtrak has committed US$944 million to the “Transforming Rail in Virginia” initiative. The U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said the nation is ready to support transit, including passenger rail, as it pulls out of a pandemic-fueled economic downturn. He cited the recently approved stimulus package that gives Amtrak US$1.7 billion to restore some service and bring back furloughed workers.
“Northern Virginia is at the crossroads of the Mid-Atlantic rail network, where the existing Long Bridge is the only rail bridge connecting Virginia to Washington, D.C., creating a choke point for rail traffic between the Southeast and Northeast,” said Congressman Don Beyer, U.S. Representative for Virginia’s 8th Congressional District. “I worked with a coalition of my colleagues in Congress to authorize and fund a new Long Bridge, an effort that also helped the commonwealth secure access to the federal land needed for construction of the new Long Bridge. This project is estimated to bring nearly US$6 billion annually in benefits to the region by 2040.”
