Ok, how does this jibe with the idea of a freight rail bypass of DC?

by Alex B. on Sep 2, 2009 11:05 am • link • report

Wow - that Railroad Ave bridge in Woodbridge appears to service like...what? 8 houses? I don't think I want to know what it will cost to raise the roof on that bridge.

by Chris S on Sep 2, 2009 11:10 am • link • report

Plus there's a connection to that subdivision, too - but the road looks like it's barricaded.

You could remove that bridge fairly easily and just be done with it. I'm sure, however, there are all sorts of access restrictions on that subdivision. Those might even be private streets.

by Alex B. on Sep 2, 2009 11:29 am • link • report

I didn't know the bridge in Woodbridge was going to be replaced. Do you have more details?

While we are talking about Woodbridge, VRE is building a second platform and elevator at their Woodbridge station. The CSX tracks were shifted closer to the new platform. The project will be completed by November. For more info see VRE's website at vre.org

by Davin Peterson on Sep 2, 2009 11:58 am • link • report

What is the problem with adding another right of way along the Anacostia from Benning Road, where the present freight line goes into the city- following the east side of the Anacostia River- down the existing ROW- and extending it past Blue Plains , then adding another rail river crossing? This could also potentially become a passenger ROW- and another main train station could be built on that side of the city. We need more rail ROWs not just improvements on existing lines- which should have been made decades earlier but were not.

by w on Sep 2, 2009 12:09 pm • link • report

Chris/Alex/Davin: the connection to the subdivision is barricaded, so as things stand now that bridge is the only outside access from the 7 houses along Railroad Ave.

W: for starters, problem #1 with adding another ROW is that you have the Anacostia Naval Annex and Bolling AFB in the way on one side, and South Capitol St and I-295 on the other side. Then there's Blue Plains. Then there's wetlands, having to cross the Beltway, and National Harbor in the way. Can't go inland from the river because of the hills. The freight rail bypass study that Matt referenced looked at another river crossing connecting to Alexandria, and found both technical/engineering issues (such as the ones I mentioned above), and a very high cost for more limited benefits than other alternatives available.

IMO, the option of going east from Fredericksburg, crossing the river near the 301/Nice Bridge, and utilizing existing tracks on the Maryland side is the best option. Besides moving the CSX freight trains out of the core of DC, it opens up the exiting CSX tracks between Fredericksburg and Alexandria to almost sole use by Amtrak and VRE....you'd then just have the Norfolk Southern trains going through Alexandria and across the Long Bridge and the Virginia Ave Tunnel.

by Froggie on Sep 2, 2009 12:22 pm • link • report

I'm wondering the same thing as Alex B -- does this mean that the National Capital Planning Commission's proposal to route freight traffic around DC rather than through it is dead?

by DC_Chica on Sep 2, 2009 12:37 pm • link • report

"And commuters on other modes have much to gain as well. By eliminating track bottlenecks like the Virginia Avenue tunnel in Southeast DC, commuters on MARC's Camden and Brunswick Lines will experience less freight congestion."

Will the reduction in freight congestion benefit MARC commuters with more and longer passenger trains? Or just less chance of delay on the few trains we have already?

by Kev29 on Sep 2, 2009 12:51 pm • link • report

It's unfortunate if they're doing this work instead of working out a bypass option. It seems so unnecessary to have so much freight traffic go through the city.

Re: the Railroad Ave bridge, CSX should just buy an easement from that subdivision to provide access to those homes. The bridge replacement would cost, what, $10 million? I imagine they could buy an easement for $500k. How'd those townhouse residents like to not have HOA fees for 10 years in exchange for allowing access to 8 homes.

by Joey on Sep 2, 2009 12:52 pm • link • report

Does CSX ever need to load or unload any goods within the confines of the District of Columbia? If not, then my guess is that it would be cheaper if the USDOT used eminent domain to build CSX a new bypass track from Alexandria to PG County and then gave CSX the new track in exchange for CSX surrendering its DC lines to Amtrak.

by tom veil on Sep 2, 2009 1:02 pm • link • report

Froggie
with all due respect,I beg to differ.
If it were to be a freeway going thru this part of Anacostia,
a way be be figured out to make it work.

I believe that there has been a kind of entrenched and irrational resistance to new rights of way for rail- as opposed to new rights of way for cars and trucks- and this kind of obstinance needs to disappear in the USA for us to progress.
There is an existing rail line that goes all the way down the river, almost to the foot of the Wilson Bridge ,already in place.
It could be expanded and another crossing could be engineered.
Even if it were not used for freight- it could be another passenger route. All existing rail ROWs should be utilized- and this ROW is basically dormant/ abandoned.

by w on Sep 2, 2009 1:10 pm • link • report

W: you're missing a basic precept of engineering. Highways can be built with steeper grades and tighter curves than railroads can...especially if you want that railroad to have a halfways decent operating speed. Hence why the right-of-way needs for railroads are more sticky and demanding.

Furthermore (and also in reply to tom veil), as I already mentioned, the bypass study already looked at a river crossing in Alexandria, and rejected it, not just because of difficulty in construction and ROW issues, but also in part because utilizing the existing tracks you refer to would further isolate Anacostia and Southeast from the river.

by Froggie on Sep 2, 2009 1:53 pm • link • report

Use of the Shepherd Branch to Blue Plains is a non-starter. How would you get across the river? The bypass and new downriver Potomac crossing (Nice Bridge area) would cost billions and the NIMBYs in Charles and PG Counties would keep the project tied up for years. Between Bowie and the river, and between Dahlgren and Fredericksburg there is an existing ROW. To connect Bowie to the CSX network, though, would either require trains to run on Amtrak's Northeast Corridor (probably not a winner and Amtrak would require installation of freight-only tracks) or a completely new ROW between Bowie and the Laurel area.

by Paul on Sep 2, 2009 2:56 pm • link • report

a frieght rail bypass to the MD 301 corridor would open up most of the lines into DC for round-the-clock passenger rail - instantaneous "express track" service into the city.

It seems like a win-win... my guess is that freight rail proponents might not think it's viable quick enough to meet their bottom line, even though it would be a superior mechanism to meet their needs. But if some politicians got on board and began to float the idea in the public consciousness, I don't see why something could not be moved on fairly quickly.

by stevek_fairfax on Sep 2, 2009 3:32 pm • link • report

Everyone is not considering the costs involved here, CSX's plan is about 1 billion, which is nothing considering everything they want to do, and givin its only modifying existing areas the cost overruns would be minimal.

If there was a new right of way the costs would be 10 times that number plus overruns would be completely out of control. Just wait until they start building in someone's neighborhood and the legal battle that would ensue.

by Matt on Sep 2, 2009 4:04 pm • link • report

Also, with these tunnel and bridge clearance projects, are there provisions for future overhead electrification - not just for passenger rail, but for freight rail as well?

by Alex B. on Sep 2, 2009 4:30 pm • link • report

The freight rail bypass around Washington is not dead, no. But it is also not a sure thing and would take years to build anyway.

A forthcoming post will detail those options laid out by NCPC.

***

The replacement of the Railroad Avenue Bridge in Woodbridge is estimated to cost $2.7 million.

The cheapest project involves lowering the track under Kenilworth Avenue and the Baltimore-Washington Parkway. Combined, these projects total an esimated $254,000. The most expensive project is the Virginia Avenue Tunnel at approximately $122 million.

You can view the estimated cost of projects at: http://www.mwcog.org/uploads/committee-documents/kl5bWV5e20090828104956.pdf, page 5.

***

The disused trackage through Anacostia presents problems as well. Many of you have argued, "let's get it out of the city by moving it to Anacostia." Anacostia is not that far removed from the government buildings on Capitol Hill and in the Southwest Federal Center. And people live there. Largely minority and disadvantaged people, so there's going to be an environmental justice argument, as there rightly should be.

I'll discuss some of these issues in the forthcoming post.

***

@Joey,
Making these investments are short-term type investments. A freight bypass might or might not be in CSX's benefit, but remember that their main competitor's double-stack route is expected to open this year. CSX can't wait 15 years for USDOT to decide whether a bypass is a good idea.

Besides, for goods moving from the South to the Mid-West via CSX's east coast main line, going through Washington (and the Virginia Avenue Tunnel) is much shorter than a route through Bowie. NCPC's study did not look at that movement.

by Matt Johnson on Sep 2, 2009 5:00 pm • link • report

OK rail experts, explain this to me. CSX runs a daily train filled with oranges north from Florida to a Tropicana processing plant near Jersey City, NJ. Then they run the train down with empty cars. Why is the Tropicana Orange Juice plant located not in Florida but in Jersey City?

I never understood this when I lived in NJ, or when I lived in Florida, and I certainly don't understand it now when I see the CSX OJ train rumble through DC every day.

---

On the bigger issue of the rail bypase, I still think that security should rule the day on this one. Running a train though a dense urban area really makes no sense, especially when that train has to pass close to various federal buildings and the US Capitol Building. Forget terrorism, a simple derailment of a train carrying Chlorine or another chemical could be catostrophic.

by metronic on Sep 2, 2009 5:10 pm • link • report

Metronic, the Tropicana plant IS in Florida. The facility in NJ is a distribution center. The train moves bottled OJ much more cheaply than the hundreds of trucks and drivers needed to move the same amount.

As far as the bypass is concerned, the line through Anacostia looks good on paper, and wouldn't be that hard physically. The logical spot would run due east from the existing spur to the coal plant in Alexandria across the river to just north of the Blue Plains plant. The east side of the river is fairly full of military buildings, though, and if security/threat of terrorism is the impetus for building a bypass in the first place, I don't see the DOD allowing trains to use that route.

The obvious route is, as Paul pointed out, to use the abandoned spur to Dalghren, build a new swing or lift brige at the Nice Bridge, and follow the existing line to Bowie. Of course, there is no room for all, or really any, of the freight trains that would use this route on the NEC, so a new line to the CSX tracks south of Laurel would be necessary. This is really not that far fetched, because there are few houses along the route that this would take. Of course, the reason for this is that most of the area between the Amtrak and CSX ROW's is either the Agricultural Research Center, or the Patuxent Wildlife Refuge. I really don't know how difficult it would be legally to build a new line here, but it would almost certainly be easier than building through a military base.

by kinverson on Sep 2, 2009 7:48 pm • link • report

The problem with a freight bypass is that CSX services a number of freight customers within the District itself.

For instance, CSX runs coal trains to the Capitol power plant which is in the middle of DC. I don't see a way to reroute freight trains headed for the power plant away from DC if they're headed directly to DC... and canceling the service entirely would result in dozens of coal trucks going down I-395 and onto city streets each day.

There's also the River Terrace power plant, which would have the same problems if service was discontinued, except more so because it is much larger.

Honestly I don't see how a freight bypass would work. My own horrifically impractical solution is to double-deck the ROW, but I have a feeling that the cost would be prohibitive and people would complain about it being an eyesore.

by donoteat on Sep 2, 2009 8:16 pm • link • report

metronic: security issues were considered in the NCPC study. They also played a factor in why a route/new bridge from Alexandria to Blue Plains was dropped from the study.

donoteat: the freight bypass would largely be for CSX through trains...there'd still be service for local freight, but as I understand it, this is more infrequent than the through trains are. You also wouldn't entirely eliminate freight rail from downtown DC anyway, since you have the Norfolk Southern line connecting from Manassas.

by Froggie on Sep 2, 2009 9:21 pm • link • report

Paul:

Amtraks right of way between Arbutus and Landover was originally built by the Pennsylvania Railroad to accommodate 4 tracks. Only 3 were installed. Over the years parts of the easement set aside for the 4th track were used for passenger platforms at Amtrak and MARC station. Reclaiming those spaces for a 4th track for freight traffic would be cheap. Building a whole new right of way to the "Nice Bridge area" is not necessary. The existing Popes Creek Branch runs from Bowie to Morgantown, Nice Bridge area. The Popes Creek Branch presently serves 2 PEPCO power plants and several other industries in Waldorf and LaPlata.

The big issue is the right of way on the west side of the Potomac River from Dahlgren to Fredericksburg and the crossing of the river. Major work would need to be done to restore that right of way and a bridge with some type draw span would need to be built to cross the river

Alex B:

Common carrier freight railroads abandoned the idea railroad electrification's back in the 1970's. It was done mostly because there was a lack of standardized electrification distribution system (600 VDC third rail, 1,500 VDC overhead, 3,000 VDC overhead, 6,600 V 3 phase AC overhead, 11.25 KVAC 25HZ overhead, 25 KVAC 60HZ overhead).

There use to be 5 major electrifications of common carrier railroads in The United States. 4 of them used the same electrification distribution system. Only 2 were connected to each other.

2 were in Virginia, The Virginian and Norfolk and Western. Two disconnected segment on the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul, and Pacific Railroad. The Pennsylvania Railroad and the New York New Haven and Hartford Railroad (NEC). The Pennsylvania Railroad and the New York New Haven and Hartford Railroad along with the New York Central merged to become The Penn Central which became Conrail, Amtrak and the Metro North Railroad.

The last common carrier freight train pulled by an electric locomotive in The United States was by Conrail on the NEC back in late 1980s.

donoteat:

I pointed out in a previous article that the PEPCO Benning Road "River Terrace" power plant is fueled with oil. Though there still is a track into the power plant, hopper cars loaded with coal haven't been seen on that track in more then 40 years.

by Sand Box John on Sep 3, 2009 12:42 am • link • report

Matt, thanks for the great posts on Washington's railroads. It combines two of my favorite interests, Railroads and Urbanism.
To comment about all the plans for a bypass, I don't see how it is a practical solution. Like donoteat said, there are a lot of customers in DC itself that need to be served. Plus having two rail routes to maintain instead of one, when the route through DC isn't at capacity once the VA Ave tunnel is addressed, seems silly. And the concern about a derailment seems overblown; I think the last major derailment in DC was at Union Station in 1953...way before my time at least. Frankly I'm a lot more concerned about trucks traveling on 295/395.

by Merarch on Sep 3, 2009 12:54 am • link • report

Merarch:

The most resent derailment happened on 11 09 2007 when several cars of a CSX coal train derailed on the bridge over the Anacostia River resulting in closure of the rail link between Baltimore and points south of Washington.

I really don't believe that anybody involved in the proposed to build a freight rail bypass around Washington wants to totally sever the existing railroad link between Maryland and Virginia that passes through Washington.

by Sand Box John on Sep 3, 2009 2:07 am • link • report

donoteat - The capitol power plant no longer uses coal. Two days before youth activists staged a mass protest, Pelosi converted it to 100% natural gas.
http://speaker.house.gov/blog/?p=1711

by Yochi on Sep 3, 2009 2:09 am • link • report

Yochi - Converting the Capitol Power Plant (arguably the single biggest point source of pollution in DC) is high on the Speaker's "Greening the Capitol" wish list, but it's far from a done deal. She and the House side don't have the final say in the matter. Senators from coal states (read: Robert Byrd) will likely make a fuss about that.

Sand Box John - Amtrak has never cottoned to the idea of sharing the NEC with large number of freight trains. Understandable after the Gunpow wreck in '87 that killed 16 people. Plus we're going to need that fourth track for passenger trains one day. A completely separate ROW could follow the NEC for a bit, but the best route is through the wildlife refuge and the Ag Dept Research station. I don't think either is going to happen without a huge stink. CSX also routes a considerable amount of East-West traffic through DC and along the Metropolitan Subdivision (the line through Mont. Co). In order to re-route this traffic around DC, the Old Main Line between Point of Rocks and Baltimore would need to be improved from the ground up, and probably double-tracked for its entire distance, and realignments here and there due to gradients and curvature.

The Pope's Creek branch is low speed, single-track with many crossings at grade. It would have to be completely rebuilt. I'm sure the neighbors will have a fit at the idea of dozens of trains per day on this alignment.

by Paul on Sep 3, 2009 8:53 am • link • report

Yochi: there's still some sort of coal unloading unit next to the plant which is still well used. I don't know if that has anything to do with the power plant itself, but clearly there is something in the capital which uses a hell of a lot of coal.

by donoteat on Sep 3, 2009 10:29 am • link • report

@donoteat,
I think you might be seeing coal hoppers parked at the Benning Rail Yard, which stretches alongside the Anacostia Freeway (Route 295) from the Anacostia River (F Street SE) to Benning Road.

This yard is where CSX trains on the Alexandria Extension drop off cars bound for the Pope's Creek Secondary. In order to make this run, CSX freights run up the Landover Subdivision (parallel to the Orange Line) and near Landover Metro, they merge with the Amtrak NEC. From there they run up the NEC at low speeds to the wye at old Bowie. At Bowie, they turn onto the Pope's Creek Secondary, run down through Upper Marlboro and Waldorf, and serve the Mirant coal-fired power plants at Chalk Point and Morgantown.

Since one of the proposals calls for upgrading the Pope's Creek Secondary to the bypass, these customers would be even more directly served.

Currently, this coal, which comes from the Alleghenies, makes a layover in DC, but is headed further downriver.

by Matt Johnson on Sep 3, 2009 11:13 am • link • report

There will be resistance to the CSX plan as it exist now, as well. For example, the Deer Park Bridge, which Montgomery County just repaired, is considered historic. Replacing it will take more work than just building a new physical bridge.

by Stanton Park on Sep 3, 2009 3:57 pm • link • report

Matt Johnson: this here thing.

http://www.bing.com/maps/default.aspx?v=2&FORM=LMLTCP&cp=qgd0z08kgdnv&style=b&lvl=1&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&phx=0&phy=0&phscl=1&scene=24021817&encType=1

So far as I can tell, it's still working.

by donoteat on Sep 3, 2009 7:23 pm • link • report

donoteat - It's definitely still working. They built a new coaling receiving facility south of the tracks when they built the new chiller plant.

by Paul on Sep 3, 2009 7:37 pm • link • report

Paul:

I am well aware of Amtraks reluctance to share their tracks with freight carriers. As you probably already know, The Maryland State Department of Transportation has long term plans to add the 3rd and or 4th track to the NEC within the state where they don't already exist. Prior to the down fall of the merged Penn Central the NEC accommodated a greater number of daily trains both freight and passenger on the corridor then are accommodated today.

Double tracking the Old Main line would not be that big of a deal. Realigning it would be, as most of the line follows a water level route between Relay and Point of Rocks.

As to the Popes Creek Branch, I wouldn't consider it to be slow speed as the entire length of the branch is laid with continuos welded rail and is reasonably well maintained to allow the daily movement of 5,000 ton plus unit coal trains. Their are several passing tracks along the line. There is no doubt that the entire length of the branch would have to have a second track added and grade separation would have to be done at several of the crossings along the line. Amtraks NEC crosses the CSX Old Main Line within a mile of the of the junction of the Capital Subdivision at Relay, so your new right of way across the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center would be unnecessary.

by Sand Box John on Sep 3, 2009 10:23 pm • link • report

Sand Box John:

Thanks for the correction. I forgot about the accident on the Anacostia Bridge. If I recall correctly deferred maintenance was the cause. Imho CSX and Amtrak need to do address the condition of all the bridges on the PRR's old freight line through SE and SW. The bridges in Southwest look especially ratty and caked with serious rust. I'm sure the drainage of the ballast, or lack thereof, doesn't help.

by Merarch on Sep 5, 2009 1:49 am • link • report

Off topic, but does anyone have an update on the reinstallation of the third track on the RF&P from AF to just North of the Franconia/Springfield Metro. Also, VA has submitted two stimulus requests, I wonder if either will have any chance at actually being funded. I read that 8b is available, but already states have put in requests totaling 100b. Rusty

by rustyr0824 on Oct 6, 2009 2:47 pm • link • report

Where can one find cross sections of the proposed improvements to the Virginia Avenue SE Tunnel?

by Douglas A. Willinger on Jan 4, 2010 3:03 am • link • report

There might be a possible idea to bring down costs of taking care of Amtrak's Classic 25Hz 12Kv Pennsyvinia Railroad Catenary. Vriginia Power is planning on expanding the Lake Anna Atomic Power plant near Culeper County by adding over 1500 megawatts of new power to it. Virginia Power would love to sell lower coast Vrgiinia Grid power to Amtrak. What Virginia Power could do to help would be to build three or five large generators that are custom built to make nothing but 25Hz Amtrak NEC Catenary power. The high voltage feeder power line could follow the existing high voltage line rights of way from Lake Anna to the Future NEC high speed rail route to Richmond and act as a new feeder line from Lake Anna to Mayland and any future eletric rail lines in Mayland and Washingtion DC. This new Amtrak 25Hz only power feed could help bring down the cost of Amtrak's 25Hz power system in that they could cut back on the amount of power they have to buy form the higher priced power companies up north. And they wouldn't have to use the very expessive Sadtic Conveters to that turn grid power 60Hz into Amtrak power 25Hz. The power would come freash from the power plant at 25Hz and would save Amtrak tens of millions of dollars in operating costs in buying new sources of 25Hz power for their old system and for a future extension down to Richmond VA and Norfolk. Vriginia Power would have far more resources of giving Amtrak it's 25Hz power needs by generating it freash with out static converters.

The side effect of this is that one day a GG1 Locomtive could one day enter Richmond's Main Street Station.

by OceanRailroader on Aug 16, 2010 12:03 am • link • report