VRE Train 336 Alexandria to Washington Union Station Express

Railfan window view from reverse peak VRE Manassas Train #336 as it runs from Alexandria, VA to Washington DC's Union Station via the Long Bridge and the downtown viaduct and First Street Tunnels.
NOTE: The man taking to his child in the videos is not me.

[@douglasengle2704]

Thanks for the video. With the catenary electric locomotive shown on the front caption of the video I thought maybe the railroads had electrified the route between Washington Union Station to Alexandria. It turned out that electric locomotive was just on the adjacent track when the VRE came into the Union Station at the end of the line. When I was kid I used to always think the Alexandria passenger train station was a cool railroad experience and IT HAD AN ELECTRIFIED CATENARY. I may have seen the famous GG1 electric locomotive run by the Alexandria VA passenger station. I aways wanted to see how the tunnel to Union Station was integrated into the the Washington DC Mall. It was really hard to make out just using maps and there is really no indication of it around the DC Mall. I miss seeing the electric catenary on Long Bridge. It represented the Northeast Corridor extending into Virginia where I lived and a much more active railroad environment.

[@PositionLight]

The wire went to Potomac Yard in Alexandria for freight service via the Landover Line. The First Street tunnel was never electrified for clearance reasons. There would have been GG1's crossing the Long Bridge, but they never went as far as Alexandria station.

[@DanMeyer80]

nice video, i got to ride these same rails, on an Amtrak trip from my home in Cleveland to Jacksonville Fla. Spent 3 hours in Union Station for layover from the Capital Limited to the Silver Star. The bridge over the Patomac ties the Amtrak First Street Tunnel as my favorite sections going through DC

[@Trainmaster909]

So the train comes out from underneath the Capitol Building and into the back of the station through a tunnel? Always wondered how that train arrived in Union Station. Also noticed that parked AEM-7 waiting to pick up a Genesis-powered Northeast Regional train coming from Virginia.

[@PositionLight]

It would pick up the cars, not the diesel.

[@christopherreiff3192]

Corridor clipper in Washington Union station

[@AndreJuilland]

Quite slow for a busy commuter train

[@cameronriccio6050]

This is much slower than normal

[@outdoorolli5754]

Stone Age Railroad... In which developing country is that?

[@yarmo28]

Is the roadbed so bad or are the trains just old? All that swaying and squeaking is incredible.

[@Wingnutcaseman]

It might sound bad but they’re perfectly fine. Old school gallery cars always make these creaky noises.

[@soundseeker63]

This line used to be electrified? I see old support structures but no wires anymore.

[@PositionLight]

It was electrified through to Potomac Yard in Alexandria, VA. Electrified operations ceased in 1981 and the yard itself was removed in the late 1990s.

[@russellgxy2905]

@@PositionLight What railroad was in charge of that? I want to say the Pennsy because they were the only electric railroad operators using Washington Union Station, but at the same time their locomotives always handed trains over to the RF&P for journeys south of the capitol and the others were the C&O and Southern. I don't recall any of those southern roads having electric operations, do you have any more knowledge on this?

[@PositionLight]

@@russellgxy2905 The PRR electrified into Potomac Yard. Freight would branch off at Landover and then bypass downtown DC. Through 1980 much of the freight was electric. After 1986 Amtrak kicked most through freight off the NEC due to the Chase, MD wreck. The RF&P sale to CSX in 1994(?) eliminated any reason for Potomac yard to exist and by the end of the 90's CSX also bough half of Conrail.

[@vincente9456]

The southern side of D.C's Union station is not electrified. Only north of Union Station is electrified. Locomotives must switch out from diesel or electric at Union station depending on which way they are traveling.

[@tyhik9338]

Reminds me of the South Shore bilevels and the new highliners

[@russellgxy2905]

Well both are based on the Gallery Car design to bilevel commuter cars. All of VRE's passenger cars are gallery cars so they'd likely remind you of Chicago trains

[@muhammadchalidafin5644]

What, wow amtral tour into gold miner!

[@tincanboat]

why are they going so slow?

[@PositionLight]

Curves, bridges, nearby buildings?

[@daviddowling9830]

Don’t worry about it speedy.

[@RedArrow73]

South of the Potomac it is Ex- ??

[@NOVARailandWeatherEnthusiast]

RedArrow73 RF&P. north it’s former pennsy.