Virginia DRPT, CSX agreement to help progress Potomac Shores train station development

Written by Kyra Senese, Managing Editor
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Artist rendering of the Potomac Shores VRE Station head house.
SunCal

The final design of a new Virginia Railway Express (VRE) train station is making progress, following the recently completed final contract amendment between the Virginia Department of Rail Public Transportation (DRPT) and CSX Transportation (CSX).  

 

Officials said the contract amendment spelled out which of the third-track corridor enhancements will be completed in the near future.

The new VRE station will be located on the banks of the Potomac River 30 miles south of Washington, D.C. The 1,920-acre community is being developed by SunCal, which is also sponsoring the station construction work.

“Potomac Shores is a waterfront destination being designed as a transit-oriented development due to its convenient access to the on-site VRE station,” officials said.

The station is set to be located in the community’s town center and overlook the Potomac River, officials said.

CSX has been building a third set of tracks from the Arkendale station northward to Powells Creek, just north of Potomac Shores, to serve alongside the existing CSX tracks, officials said. CSX’s work is part of the Arkendale to Powells Creek Third Track project, funded by grants from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) and the Virginia DRPT, officials said, adding that the Potomac Shores station’s design has been coordinated to align with the rail improvement project.

“The signing of the agreement to identify improvements to be completed in the near future, and the interim condition for the corridor until additional funding becomes available, will allow the Potomac Shores station to move forward,” said Andrew Wagner, project manager, Potomac Shores. “This new station will be a huge convenience for residents, allowing them to commute to jobs in Washington and elsewhere, and the station will be easily accessed from our future town center.”

Planning for the train station’s engineering and construction is a public-private project which requires that federal agencies and other entities review and approval the planned work, officials noted. Potomac Shores has been collaborating with VRE, CSX, the Commonwealth of Virginia, the county and the U.S. Department of Transportation to organize the station’s design and construction.

Potomac Shores is designating nearly $20 million toward the train station in partnership with the various agencies, and it expects that the construction of the station will move forward in late 2018.

Officials said they currently predict that the station will be ready for service in 2020. The station is being designed by CORE architecture + design of Washington, D.C.

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