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August

Thanks for another quick hour of questions and comments.

If we missed your question or you need additional feedback, please send an email to gotrains@vre.org and put Online Forum in the subject line.

Summer is still in full force, so please stay safe and stay hydrated. 

We’ll see you out there on the trains or back here next month.

Rich, Chris, …et al.

  • Dave from Ticket Machines asks
    Three of the ticket machines were not working at L'Enfant yesterday and this morning two of the ticket machines at Woodbridge were not working (both sides of the tracks).

    VRE Response
    Thanks for the comment Dave.  We found tickets or other paper jammed in the slots.  We do have all of the equipment now to begin the upgrade of the Ticket Vending Machines, just waiting on software updates.  The upgrade will replace every component including the card readers, ticket printers, touch screens, and the underlying computers.  We expect to see a big improvement in reliability and ease of use.  

  • Davin Peterson from Woodbridge, VA asks
    What is the status of the storage track south of L'Enfant Plaza? The equipment page says VRE has 100 cars in service, but really only 86 cars if you add all the cars up and Train #309 could use another car,

    VRE Response
    Davin, We are working on wayside (ground) power at the siding south of L'Enfant.  We will be able to store two trains there as a temporary enhancement of our midday storage.  This will allow us to lengthen trains stored in the yard north of Union Station.

    While we do have 100 cars, some of those are part of a required spare fleet to allow regularly scheduled maintenance on the other equipment.

  • Davin from Woodbridge, VA asks
    Why does Amtrak get to go so fast past VRE, while VRE goes so slow? VRE engineers need to drive faster like Amtrak does

    VRE Response
    All passenger trains have the same speed restrictions.  Differences you may notice may be based on whether there are speed restrictions on specific tracks due to track work, or may be because VRE trains have more stops.  Consequently, the VRE trains do not have as much opportunity to get to track speed before having to decelerate for the next station.

  • Douglas from Broad Run, Virginia asks
    As the new owner of a plug in hybrid electric vehicle, I was wondering if the plans for the Broad Run parking lot expansion include charging stations for electric vehicles? I think this would be a great addition.

    VRE Response
    We'll share the comment with our planners and ask them to pass it on to Prince William County for consideration.

  • Denise from Woodbridge asks
    Are there any plans to eventually have trains run later in the evening? I would love to be able to do city things and still make it home that night, but with the last VRE leaving L'Enfant at 6:48 and the last Amtrak leaving Union Station at 7:05, that's never possible.

    VRE Response
    No current plans Denise, but we wouldn't rule it out if there was a demand.  However, currently our latest trains do not run at or near capacity.

  • Rick from Fredericksburg asks
    Why is it that you suggest sending an email to Gotrains but we need never receive a reply as to the resolution?

    VRE Response
    Rick,

    If you send your question or comment to GoTrains and put Online Forum in the subject line, you will get a response. We may not be able to answer the question or give you the response you're looking for, but you will get a response.

    Some emails get filtered to our junk mail folder, but we try to go through it daily to pull out the legitimate ones.

  • Davin from Woodbridge, VA asks
    Will VRE's Mobile app be upgraded to the new platform this month and will it look MTA's Charm Pass app. I saw on the Google Play Store that MTA has a 31 day pass and hope that VRE adds a 31 Day Pass. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.baltimore.mta.mobiletickets

    VRE Response
    We will be upgraded to the new platform.  We do not have a firm schedule yet, but probably sometime in October.  We did a presentation to our Operations Board in July about a 31-Day Pass and will keep everyone posted on it if and when we may be able to add it to our fare types.

  • Connie from Brooke asks
    With the triple digit temperatures along with heat restrictions, why are the conductors permitted to stand in the vestibule chatting with passengers that are in the car and holding the doors open? Doesn't this kinda' defeat the purpose of having AC? When conductors are asked if the doors can be closed, the response is along the line that it is "their train" as well indicating that there is nothing wrong with holding the doors open. I understand that the crew and passengers want/need to chat periodically, but is it necessary/required that it be done while holding the doors open and letting the triple digit heat in?

    VRE Response
    All great points Connie, we'll address with the crews.

  • David from Manassas asks
    Once again this am Manassas train 324 did the slow crawl into Alexandria & onward due to following a Fredericksburg train. Two questions? Why when going this slow are the conductors checking tickets. (324 has not been checked yet this week). Will the proposed new Crystal City stop and Long Bridge project resolve this slow down which appears to happen much too often.

    VRE Response
    Thanks David, It is a good opportunity to check tickets, so Gerald will address it with the crews.

    Once we have new platforms and more tracks across the Long Bridge, we will no longer have to single track from Alexandria north.

     

  • Jonathan from fred asks
    Train #303 was delayed yesterday due to a broken freight train by a good amount of time - more than 30 minutes for the stops after Woodbridge/Rippon. We arrived about 40 minutes late at Leeland Road. FRC's were not handed out until after Leeland Road. So now, if we need one, the onus is on us to submit the form, copy the ticket and so forth. While this may be a trivial matter to some, it is the point of the thing that is frustrating. We spent a lot of time sitting still or just inching along, so this administrative item could easily have been handled by the conductors. A poor use of time then and unnecessary time used today to prepare and submit a request. Come on, VRE, you can do better than this!

    VRE Response
    We'll check with the conductors Jonathan, but the FRCs should have been handed out as soon as the delay hit the 30 minute mark so everyone who deserved one could get it.  There may be circumstances where trains are too crowded for conductors to get through, but we don't believe this is one of those times.  Gerald will address with the crew.

  • Chris from Burke, VA asks
    Hi, I park my car at Burke Center station and during evening rush hour, I see that it is not easy to get out from T junction (Premier Ct) as cars through Premier Ct do not stop to give way cars come out from Burke Centre Station. could it be possible to put stop signs on all of three . So people come out from station get their turn. Thank you.

    VRE Response
    We'll share this with Fairfax County.

  • Murray from Burke, VA asks
    Hi, Recently I sent several emails to feedback@vre.org but I never got any response. do you monitor that email box? My question was I purchased ticket from my phone app and it charged me twice. could it be possible to refund me? I hope this time, I have VRE attention on this matter. Thank you.

    VRE Response
    Sorry for the confusion Murray.  We'll find out about the feedback email address.  In the meantime, send your contact info to us at Gotrains@vre.org, put Online Forum in the subject line and we'll have someone call you to take care of the refund.

     

  • Monica from Rippon VA asks
    Can we add a 2:00 train? There is a big gap between 12:55 and 3:10

    VRE Response
    We agree with the convenience of a train between the midday trains and the afternoon service and will continue to work with the host railroads.

  • Debbie from Broad Run, VA asks
    Has the contract with the 7/11 in Manassas been completed yet so they can sell tickets again and if not then when do you expect them to be able to go back to selling tickets. It's very inconvenient to only offer one vendor on the Manassas Line and take them out of commission and yet you offer several on the Fredericksburg Line.

    VRE Response
    Everything has been completed and we expect the vendor to reopen within the next week, following training for the new staff.  We will announce on a Train Talk when we are ready to reopen.

  • rp from dumfires asks
    What exactly was the "equipment" problem on 306 this morning?

    VRE Response
    As mentioned earlier, this was a PTC issue.  We have technicians looking at the logs to see what the specific issue was.

  • Dave from Woodbridge asks
    With so many Amazon jobs coming to Arlington in the near future does VRE plan to purchase additional trains/cars for each line? Not all of these people will be living in Arlington and taking VRE will make sense for their commute.

    VRE Response
    The short answer Dave is yes, we will be purchasing cars to allow us to increase capacity.  We are also working to expand all of our yards to be able to accommodate additional equipment.

  • David from Woodbridge, Va asks
    Good morning. I overheard one of the conductors talking this week and they mentioned that VRE and CSX are going to have conversations with regards to train times. If that is the case would VRE consider moving up the morning departure times for the 300 Express and the 322 1st Manassas Train in the mornings?

    VRE Response
    Thanks for the question David.  We speak with CSX daily about schedules and other operational issues and while we are looking at some adjustments to help minimize delays due to congestion on the network, we do not have any plans to change the departure times of the first trains for each line.

  • Robin from Broad Run asks
    The 'Set Up'; For the fourth time, I have witnessed the same man 'hang back' at the Manassas stop. He waits until nobody is leaving the train, and the riders to start 'queing' for Broad Run. THEN he starts pushing and shoving to get off the train. THAT is assault. He needs to get off the train instead of trying to create conflict with the other passengers. It's one thing for people to 'que up' inappropriately many stops ahead; but to prepare to disembark at the next stop should NOT be an issue. VRE needs to 'discourage' the practice of riders trying to cause this issue!

    VRE Response
    Robin,

    If there is a passenger intentionally trying to create conflict, please let the conductor know and we will try to manage it individually.

    The best solution, however, is for Broad Run passengers to not queue until the doors have closed and the train begins to depart Manassas.  The extra minute in your seat will eliminate this as a challenge.

  • Sara and Dave from Woodbridge, VA asks
    30 + Minutes late = FRC. Using new math we are owed approximately 2,355 FRCs but have not received one. Sara contacted VRE via email and received no response. Has policy changed or are we continuing the VREs "customer is always wrong" policy?

    VRE Response
    Any Free Ride Certificate request sent into our email address gotrains@vre.org has already been mailed out. If you still haven't received your FRC please contact gotrains@vre.org directly with your address and we will have the tickets mailed to you immediately. 

  • Joe from Stafford, VA asks
    The PTC related delays are out of control. Is it possible to disable PTC until you work the bugs out of it?

    VRE Response
    We understand the frustration Joe.  No, we do not have the option to cut out PTC.  We have seen the number and length of PTC related delays decline with continuous software updates, but there are still isolated incidents.  This morning, we had one isolated incident on train 306, which created not only a 40 minute delay for the train but also cascading delays for other trains.  314 also had a PTC issue, but a quick system reset kept the train on schedule.

    We have folks looking at the logs to determine the root cause, but it was isolated to that equipment.  Last week there were 6 PTC related delays, affecting 7 trains which is a big improvement, but there is still work to be done.

  • Scherry from Fredericksburg VA asks
    is there any discussion or plans to extend the overhead shelter at the LeFant station? There's not enough room for everyone to be under and out of the weather and between the triple digits and the brutal thunder storms this should be seriously considered.

    VRE Response
    No plans in the short-term Scherry, but when we do the station and platform improvements we will keep this in mind.

  • Early train Rider from Fredericksburg VA asks
    Why does the express train have to wait at Alexandria station for 10 minutes? Pretty much defeats being early!

    VRE Response
    Originally, Alexandria was an "L" station, meaning if it is early it could depart as soon as all station work is complete.  Because we are now seeing many more riders originating their trip from Alexandria, 300, and all of our other trains need to hold until their scheduled departure. Shuttle and feeder buses are bringing passengers to the station to meet the trains at their scheduled time.  We are currently doing two things to minimize the dwell time for 300.

    1. We will include an adjustment to the schedule to more accurately reflect arrival time at Alexandria and minimize the dwell time when we make other schedule adjustments system-wide, and,

    2. When we have another train arriving at the station right behind 300 or on the adjacent track we ask the CSX dispatcher to allow 300 to depart early.

  • Bob from Burke asks
    No different than every summer - trains enter the stations smelling like bad butt. It is a fact of life - human smells - but VRE should have some lessons learned regarding upping the chemicals in the summer.

    VRE Response
    Sorry Bob, we agree it is not pleasant but it is not a matter of simply adding chemicals, the bathrooms have to vent to the outside.

  • Gary from Alexandria, va asks
    What is the status of previously announced changes to the Alexandria station?

    VRE Response
    The project is ongoing Gary, you can see the latest on our website under Projects.  A complementary project to add a cross over from track 2 to track 1 at Slaters Lane, just north of the station is currently being worked on.  The cross over was put in place this past weekend, and the subsequent signal work will take place in the next month.  This will allow our trains to work from all three tracks at the Alexandria Station, in conjunction with the platform improvements.

  • Marvin from Alexandria, VA asks
    What is the VRE plan to fix the access to Springfield train stop? Going up the many steps in 99 degree temperature is not healthy. Is there a plan to add electronic escalators or more elevators? Also the same concern is expressed for L'Enfant. Steep steps need to be replaced with escalators on the east side of the stop. Let's make VRE stops world class for such critical transportation service.

    VRE Response
    Thanks for the questions Marvin,

    We do have plans for station improvements at Franconia/Springfield, but those do not include escalators or anything beyond the elevators for access.

    Longer term plans for the L'Enfant station will likely include elevators, but not escalators.

  • Hui from Spotsylvania asks
    How would VRE get the approvals for run more schedules as express way? Train Number 300 is too crowd, there was a safety concern for passengers.

    VRE Response
    We have no immediate plans for additional limited stop trains.  Train 300 is an 8 car train with more than 1,000 seats and generally on peak days carries 900-950 passengers.  If you are having trouble finding a seat, please try walking to the north end of the train.  Several of us ride 300 as well and have found available seating in the north end of the train.  We will also ask the crews to make announcements pertaining to where there are seats available to help spread everyone out.

  • Monthly Rider from Woodbridge, VA asks
    Just before the Independence Day holiday, the federal government released many of its employees early. VRE prepared for this by moving trains with larger capacity to earlier in the schedule. That's a good choice for train 301. It was crowded with many standing but that's OK. The one painful thing about the July 3 train 301 run was that even though the many of us who debark in Woodbridge chose to ride in the cab car (northern end of the train), that was the car the crew decided to not make the platform. Can we get more consistency between crews as to which cars do and don't make the platform for longer consists? For those unfamiliar, many debarking in Woodbridge choose the cab car to shorten the walk to the garage.

    VRE Response
    Thank you for the comment.  To help better manage the passenger loads and spread passengers throughout the entire train, we began platforming the northernmost cars at Woodbridge, because as you note, it is more convenient for the walk to the garage.

    We're not sure why the conductor on 301 on July 3rd chose not to do so, but it may have been because someone towards the south end of the train need the assistance of the wheelchair lift, so the crew had to make the adjustment.  Our goal is to be consistent so passengers know which cars will make the platform at each station, but some adjustments may be necessary for on occasion.

    As a side note, one of the major objectives in our capital improvement plan is to lengthen all platforms, like we did recently at Lorton, to accommodate 8 car trains.

Good afternoon and welcome to the August edition of the Online Forum.  Joining us in studio today are Gerald and Paul from Keolis, Kim from Amtrak, and Brian from CSX.

We know Ontime Performance (OTP) continues to be a challenge.  While PTC is still out there, the number and length of PTC related delays has gone down.  This morning was an example of an isolated PTC incident, but the duration still affected multiple trains.  We have also been affected by heat related speed restrictions on 19 of the 22 operating days in July, and those have persisted into August.

On the bright side, we have seen a couple of days recently where OTP was back in the 90%’s, a big improvement.

Let’s move on to the questions.