Crystal City station (VRE) explained

Crystal City
Style:Virginia Railway Express
Country:U.S.
Coordinates:38.8594°N -77.0483°W
Line:CSX RF&P Subdivision
Other: Washington Metro: (at Crystal City)
Arlington Transit: 43
Fairfax Connector: 599
Metrobus: 10N, 23A, 23B
Metroway (at)
PRTC OmniRide
Platform:1 side platform
Tracks:3
Opened:June 22, 1992[1]
Accessible:Yes
Code:CCV
Zone:2
Other Services Header:Proposed services
Other Services Collapsible:yes
Mapframe:yes
Mapframe-Custom:
Shape:none
Line:none
Marker:rail
Marker-Color:
  1. 000
Zoom:15

Crystal City station is a commuter rail station in the Crystal City section of Arlington County, Virginia, located near the George Washington Memorial Parkway and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. It is served by the Fredericksburg Line and Manassas Line of the Virginia Railway Express (VRE) system. VRE plans to rebuild the station nearby to accommodate longer trains and increased service.

Planned rebuild

The station has a single side platform located on the west side of the three tracks of the RF&P Subdivision. Crystal City station, used by 18% of VRE riders in 2017, represents an "operational bottleneck" for VRE: the single 400feet-long platform is shorter than 700foot trains and forces all trains to use one track.[2] [3]

VRE plans to expand the station into a full-length center platform serving two tracks, with grade-separated access to the platform. An alternatives analysis released in November 2017 analyzed three possible sites. All three sites would allow for a future pedestrian bridge or tunnel to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport to give direct airport access from the station and Crystal City. The preferred location was slightly south of the current station, with the platform stretching from 18th Street to south of 20th Street.[4]

Preliminary engineering for the station began in late 2019.[5], final design was expected to last from January 2021 to August 2022, with construction from November 2022 to October 2024.[6] In May 2022, Amtrak and the Virginia Passenger Rail Authority reached an agreement to add a separate Amtrak platform at the station.[7] The station will be constructed with a single 850feet-long island platform with a low-level section for VRE and a high-level section for Amtrak.[8]

The project was awarded $18.8 million in state funding in June 2023, completing the $50 million in funds needed for the station.[9] An environmental assessment for the airport connection was released in July 2023. The preferred alternative was a footbridge connecting to the south entrance of the VRE station.[10]

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Fehr . Stephen . Sanchez . Carlos . Getting On Track . 11 August 2020 . Washington Post . 18 June 1992 . . 5 August 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170805021307/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/1992/06/18/getting-on-track/17395a0f-8401-4481-840d-980c3ddc4b41/ . live .
  2. News: Crystal City VRE Station Set For Major Revamp . Chris . Teale . April 25, 2017 . ARLnow . April 28, 2017 . April 26, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170426013841/https://www.arlnow.com/2017/04/25/crystal-city-vre-station-set-for-major-revamp/ . live .
  3. News: VRE looks to expand Crystal City station for easier access to airport . Max . Smith . March 30, 2017 . April 14, 2017 . . April 15, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170415012542/http://wtop.com/dc-transit/2017/03/vre-looks-expand-crystal-city-station/slide/1/ . live .
  4. Virginia Railway Express Crystal City Station Improvements Alternatives Analysis . November 13, 2017 . 34, 56 . Virginia Railway Express.
  5. Web site: VIRGINIA RAILWAY EXPRESS CRYSTAL CITY STATION IMPROVEMENTS: Preliminary Engineering Phase Kickoff Meeting . December 4, 2019 . Virginia Railway Express.
  6. Web site: https://web.archive.org/web/20210121032149/https://projects.vre.org/project?Project=Crystal+City+Station+Improvements . January 21, 2021 . live . Crystal City Station Improvements . January 18, 2021 . Virginia Railway Express.
  7. Web site: Executive Director's Report . 4 . May 2022 . Virginia Passenger Rail Authority . 2023-03-19 . 2022-12-08 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221208212409/https://vapassengerrailauthority.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/3.Executive_Directors_Report-May_2022.pdf . live .
  8. Web site: Authorization to Provide a Letter of Support for Amtrak's Application for FY22 Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail Program Funding for the Crystal City High Level Platform Project . February 17, 2023 . Rich . Dalton . Virginia Railway Express . March 19, 2023 . February 14, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230214052358/https://www.vre.org/about/board/board-agenda-minutes/2023/February/9a-letter-of-support-amtrak-pdf/ . live .
  9. VRE to Receive Over $20 Million for Two Projects . June 2, 2023 . Virginia Railway Express.
  10. Book: Environmental Assessment Crystal City to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport Multimodal Connection . Virginia Department of Transportation . July 10, 2023.