• VPRA released the final King and Commonwealth Bridges Feasibility Study which outlines their recommended option to remove and replace the existing bridge structures with new ballasted deck bridges.

Alexandria coordinates with a number of rail partners on projects in and around the City including:

• Virginia Passenger Rail Authority (VPRA)
• Virginia Railway Express (VRE) - represented by Councilwoman Sarah Bagley on VRE Operations Board
• Amtrak
• CSX
• Norfolk Southern

The Alexandria Fourth Track project will design and construct 6.0 miles of a fourth railroad track and related infrastructure between Arlington, VA, and Alexandria, VA. The project will connect the southern end of the Long Bridge Project and will construct one additional track within existing railroad right-of-way to accommodate more railroad capacity between Northern Virginia and the District of Columbia.

The Alexandria Fourth Track project is a collaborative effort. Virginia Passenger Rail Authority will lead the project, and partners include CSX Transportation (CSXT), VRE, Amtrak, and the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT). The project is in the final design phase and has been granted a $45 million FASTLANE grant from the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), who will provide oversight on the general engineering review and coordination as final designs are developed and during construction. VPRA will also coordinate with local jurisdictions and the public for input.

The Virginia Passenger Rail Authority (VPRA) is completed a feasibility study to assess alternatives for rehabilitation or replacement of the rail bridges over King Street and Commonwealth Avenue in Alexandria to improve safety and reduce maintenance. The final recommendation in the feasibility study is to remove and replace the bridge structures with new ballasted deck bridges.

VPRA plans to conducted a virtual public information meeting on the study on Wednesday, November 2, 2022 and presented on the study to the Transportation Commission on November 16, 2022. A video of the presentation to Transportation Commission is available here (Item 3 at 11 minutes 30 sectonds).

The Long Bridge Project will construct a new, two-track railroad bridge next to the existing Long Bridge which spans across the Potomac River from Virginia to Washington, DC, creating a four-track corridor. A new bike-pedestrian bridge will also be constructed as part of the mitigation that will span the Potomac River and George Washington Memorial Parkway, connecting Long Bridge Park directly to East and West Potomac Parks. The project’s purpose is to increase railroad capacity between Virginia and the District of Columbia while alleviating the rail congestion caused by the existing two-track Long Bridge.

This project is in the preliminary engineering stage. It is expected to go to final design and construction in 2023.

The proposed Alexandria Station Improvements project, led by VRE, will remove the timber pedestrian grade crossing across Track 3 (closest to the station) and Track 2. New, safer, ADA access will be provided to the other side of the tracks by adding elevators to both platforms and adjusting the platform elevations.

This project is in the design stage. It is expected to begin construction in February 2023 and be completed in 2024.