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This article was written by WTOP’s news partner InsideNoVa.com and republished with permission. Sign up for InsideNoVa.com’s free email subscription today.
Virginia Railway Express passengers will soon be able to ride certain overlapping Amtrak routes for no additional charge.
The train operator is planning to restart its Step-Up program, which allows multi-ride VRE passholders to ride select Amtrak Northeast Regional trains between Fredericksburg and D.C.’s Union Station at no additional charge.
Northern Virginia Transportation Commission staff is recommending granting VRE $1.48 million to restart the program — which was suspended in 2020 — as part of the commission’s fiscal 2024-2025 Commuter Choice grant program, which funds regional transit projects from Interstate 395/95 toll revenues. The funding would allow VRE to bring back the program for the next two years.
“We’re excited about this because it provides a really cost-effective way to increase passenger rail options for our commuters,” NVTC Program Analyst Adam Hager said at a recent Potomac and Rappahannock Transportation Commission meeting.
VRE riders with 10-ride, 7-day or 31-day passes will be able to ride Amtrak trains seven days per week at no additional cost under the program.
After cratering during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, ridership on VRE has ticked up to about one-third of what it was prior to 2020. Average daily ridership for March was 6,365, up from 3,889 in March of 2022.
Elsewhere, NVTC staff is recommending funding for several major transit projects in the region. The funding plan commits $18.8 million over the next four years to relocate the Crystal City rail station expansion to enable simultaneous boarding of two full-length trains, allowing Amtrak to serve the station along with VRE.
Another $20 million over the next four years would go to the Richmond Highway (U.S. 1) bus rapid transit line that Fairfax County is calling “The One.”
In Prince William County, the NVTC’s funding recommendations would also allocate $2.7 million for continued OmniRide service from Staffordboro to D.C., Dale City to Franconia-Springfield and Dale City to Ballston, as well as increased peak service along U.S. 1 from Quantico to the Woodbridge VRE station.
