(The following story by Ashley Halsey III appeared on the Washington Post website on August 25, 2009.)
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Maryland took another bite at the stimulus package apple Monday, requesting $360 million in federal funding to improve MARC rail service and speed up Amtrak trains through the state.
Coupled with a $74.8 million dollar request from Virginia for similar rail work, the region has asked for $434.8 million of the stimulus package money that will pass through the Federal Railroad Administration. Virginia would use some of the money for improvements that would allow the Richmond-Washington rail corridor to handle trains at speeds of 90 mph.
In Maryland, the money would be used to build wider bridges to carry rails over the Susquehanna, Gunpowder and Bush rivers; refurbish and expand the rail station adjacent to the Baltimore Washington International Marshall Airport; replace a 19th-century rail tunnel in Baltimore; and construct a rail yard at the District’s Union Station.
Expanding the bridges to accommodate three sets of rails rather than two would remove speed restrictions currently imposed on Amtrak’s high-speed passenger trains when they cross them. Currently, Amtrak trains that travel at 150 mph have to slow to 125 mph to cross the Gunpowder and Bush river bridges and 90 mph to cross the Susquehanna.
The construction at Union Station would expand the rail yard so that MARC trains would have room to remain there during the day to await the evening rush. Space restrictions force them to return to Baltimore after the morning commute.