ALEXANDRIA, Va. — For nine days in October, the last stop for most trains coming north out of Virginia will be Alexandria.
Amtrak announced Monday that it will shut down A-Interlocking, the track junction inside the First Street Tunnel just south of Washington Union Station, from the close of service Friday, Oct. 16, until service resumes Monday morning, Oct. 26. The railroad is calling the project “Pause for Progress.”
A-Interlocking routes every Amtrak and Virginia Railway Express movement between Union Station and Virginia. Its switches and crossovers are past their service life, and trains currently crawl through at 10 mph because of it. Crews will replace the switches and crossovers, rebuild the tunnel track base and install modern electric switch systems…