Five years after a federal earmark was announced for repairs to the Virginia Railway Express train station in Fredericksburg, Va., work has begun, the Freelance Star reports. Temporary chain-link fences and orange barrels surrounded the construction zone Sept. 20. The first phase will run until Oct. 15. The entire rehabilitation project will take a year.

The construction will improve a clogged drainage system on the station's railroad bridge. The bridge has no central draining point for water. Trapped water on the bridge freezes and thaws, causing the concrete surface to chip and flake. The falling concrete creates a safety hazard for pedestrians passing below on four streets: Caroline and Princess Anne, Sophia and Charles.

Because of the available budget, the repair work on this project is limited to where the bridge crosses two streets, Caroline and Princess Anne.

The station repair project originated in 2005, when then-1st District Rep. Jo Ann Davis secured a $2.6-million earmark in a federal transportation bill for station repairs. Davis died from breast cancer in 2007. The money was appropriated over fiscal years 2007-11, leading to a delay in the start of the work.

Train passengers and downtown drivers and pedestrians will experience a few disruptions during the repairs. Construction will also impact the handicapped access ramps leading to the station platform, since they are under the area where work is being done. Both ramps were supposed to be closed 24 hours a day, with passengers being directed to use the station's elevator. But the elevator is out of service until the end of this week, so the ramps will close from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. with temporary openings for anyone who needs to use them during those hours. If the elevator is back in service next week, the ramps will close completely through Oct. 15.

Also, the north end of the station platform will be closed during the first phase of construction. This means some rail car doors will not open on the platform.

Virginia Railway Express sent an e-mail to passengers alerting them to the construction and encouraging them to ask train conductors for details on rail car doors.

VRE is managing the work of Trinity Construction Group Inc. of Culpeper, Va., the contractor hired by the VRE Operations Board for the project.