The DOT has announced plans to build a new passenger rail bridge on the Potomac River.
According to Depatment of Transportation, the purpose of the Project is to provide additional long-term railroad capacity and to improve the reliability of Amtrak, VRE, and CSX Transportation (CSXT) railroad service.
The Long Bridge Project (Project) will construct two additional tracks on a new bridge structure over the Potomac River and railroad infrastructure improvements between the RO Interlocking in Arlington, Virginia, and the L’Enfant (LE) Interlocking near 10th Street SW in the District of Columbia (District) (the Long Bridge Corridor).
Currently, there is insufficient capacity, resiliency, and redundancy to accommodate the projected demand in future railroad services. The Project is needed to address railroad service demands and to ensure that the Long Bridge Corridor continues to serve as a critical link connecting the local, regional, and national transportation network. The Project connects logical termini, has independent utility, and does not restrict consideration of alternatives for other potential transportation projects in the area.
The Long Bridge Corridor includes Federal parkland managed by the National Park Service; historic and cultural properties; the Potomac River; residential buildings, offices, and hotels; and transportation facilities (Long Bridge, Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority [WMATA] Metrorail right-of-way and bridge, other railroad bridges, roadway bridges, and numerous pedestrian and bicycle trails). CSXT, a Class I freight railroad, operates the Long Bridge Corridor, including the existing two-track Long Bridge. – DOT
Courtesy – DOT
