April

• Jennifer from Alexandria, VA asks
  It would be helpful if the riders could be notified which doors are going to open at Crystal City. I am frequently running to another door hoping it will open at the platform at Crystal City. Thank you.

  VRE Response
  Thanks for the comment Jennifer.  The Conductors should be making announcements about which cars will not be on the platform at every station where applicable.  Gerald from Keolis is here with us and will make sure he addresses this with the crew members.

• Betty from Manassas asks
  I want to take a moment of your time for continuing to do this monthly forum. I know your time is precious as ours are. Thank you for continuing this wonderful and much appreciated conversation.

  VRE Response
  Our pleasure Betty, thank you for attending.  We are happy to provide the opportunity for direct feedback from the passengers.  Along those lines, our annual Meet the Management events will begin on May 24th at Union Station.  We look forward to seeing everyone in person.

• Kevin from Burke, VA asks
  Similar to the other person's comment about bird crap. The bird mess at L'Enfant is also pretty ridiculous, so please include that station in the effort to clean up the bird mess from their "nesting" in the meshed areas. Seems like the mesh didn't stop them from hanging out there and now has just become a poop-a-palooza on both sides of the platform. Thank you!

  VRE Response
  Will do Kevin.

• Kevin from Burke, VA asks
  There's been talk about expanding the VRE platform at L'Enfant Plaza for YEARS. Each time this is asked, the answer is "we're working on it". Any legitimate status on this project to minimize the congestion/water puddling?

  VRE Response
  Great question Kevin.  This project has been a long time coming and has become much more complicated than the simple fix we originally envisioned.  In short, we are working on a necessary agreement with neighboring property owners and going through a permitting process with the District.  We are definitely making progress, though admittedly much slower than we would like.  Unfortunately, we cannot give a realistic estimate on time of completion until we get past a couple of the current hurdles.

• Ray from Henrico, va asks
  What is the status of #1 track. Between akemdale and n. Possum point? The progress stops at the Bauer rd. Bridge. Thanks

  VRE Response
  The current plan is to realign current tracks 2 and 3 as we complete the Quantico station project.  The final track will then be cut in.  Current estimate is Spring 2024.

• Davin from Woodbridge, VA asks
  When will VRE upgrade it's mobile app, website and station screens as you showed in the January Board meeting?

  VRE Response
  Thanks for asking Davin.  We did an information item for our Operations Board at the March meeting and will return this month to get authorization to begin the work on VRE Mobile and vre.org.

• David from Woodbridge, VA asks
  Is there a goal in the next 20-50 years to extend VRE commuter service to Richmond? I-95 is constantly a stop and no-go situation and having the option to commute between Richmond and Washington in addition to Amtrak service would be awesome

  VRE Response
  We are in the process of developing our System Plan 2050.  You can find information on our website here.

• Pat from Fredericksburg BA asks
  When is VRE (or whomever "has the responsibility/authority) going to clean up all of the garbage that has accumulated along the tracks between Fredericksburg and Northern VA. It's disgusting and embarrassing. Y'all did not cause the pollution but it's not going to clean itself.

  VRE Response
  The CSX right of way is private property and to keep everyone safe, no one should be on the right of way, even with good intentions of cleaning up trash.  We will share the comments with CSX.

• Connie from Dumfries, VA asks
  Is there a process to get access to Quantico to ride the VRE? I tried a month or so ago and had no issues. This was my main VRE station pre-covid and now I can't get on Post without getting a visitor card from the VCC. Can someone provide the process so I and others who are new to riding the VRE at Quantico station. I showed my VRE ticket, Drivers License and Gov't Badge and still couldn't get access without going to their VCC. (Visitor Command Center). I didn't have time that morning to go to VCC so I drove to Rippon station.

  VRE Response
  Hi Connie, there is a process to receive a DBIDS card issued by the base which will permit access, though we have heard from a few riders they are being required to get daily visitor passes.  We have asked our System Safety and Security Administrator to reach out to the base for further clarification.  Once we have more information, we will  put it out in a Train Talk and post it to vre.org.

• Steve from Springfield VA asks
  Can you remind us what threshold of delay warrants a Free Ride Certificate? Seems like delays have become more common, and this morning seemed a pretty long wait with signal issues. Conductors didn't ask for tickets but also didn't provide FRCs like in other seemingly similar delays. Thanks for being reliable on most days though!

  VRE Response
  Hi Steve, thank you for reaching out.  Anytime a train is delayed by 30 or more minutes, Conductors should be offering Free Ride Certificates. With the CSX signal issue this morning, it looks like 310, and 312 hit the 30 minute mark.  Train 308 may not have hit 30 minutes, but considering we were unable to work the Lorton station, the crews should have offered FRCs for the inconvenience.  If FRCs were not provided, reach out to us at gotrains@vre.org and we'll be happy to assist.

• Kevin from Fairfax asks
  Is VRE doing anything to improve communication with riders? This morning when I arrived at the Franconia-Springfield station, you continued to list the 312 as "on-time" until it was 10 minutes late--but anyone looking at the "Train Status" map could see that the 310 hadn't even made Alexandria and was already running 40 minutes late. Why can't VRE do a better job of anticipating the impacts of earlier delays on later trains? This makes a difference to me because if I see that VRE is running significantly behind schedule (an all-too-frequent occurrence), I can change my plans and take Metro instead.

  VRE Response
  Fair point Kevin.  In this case, the issues which had caused 310's delays had been resolved and 312 had the potential to be on time.  312 was on time until they departed Lorton, but then got caught in congestion resulting from a signal issue just south of Alexandria.  The automated system on the station screens would not show the train late until it was between Lorton and Franconia-Springfield, but we should have made some manual announcements about trains encountering delays which could cause them to lose time.

• Joy from Spotsylvania VA asks
  Would you be so kind as to inform your conductors that some of the women passengers are uncomfortable with the flirting they try to engage us in. Its bothersome and unprofessional. We would just like to get from point A to point B in a timely manner without the added hassles. Thank you

  VRE Response
  We will share your comments with the Keolis Crews and Transportation Managers, Joy.

• Manny from Manassas asks
  The Manassas City parking garage needs regular cleaning. Broken glass, umbrellas, plastic and various other broken items in the parking spaces for months. In addition to the urine in the stairs. What is the plan to mitigate these issues?

  VRE Response
  Manny,

  We'll ask our Facilities Manager to work with his contractors and the Manassas city staff to help get the issues resolved.

• Patrick lorzing from Haymarket VA asks
  I've reported and sent pics huge potholes in upper lot at Broad Run Station, When will they be filled?

  VRE Response
  We'll ask our Facilities Manager to follow-up and coordinate the repairs with the responsible parties.

   

• Roxanne from Woodbridge VA asks
  There is a homeless encampment (tents) between the parking garage, wooded trees, and the track. Trash has built up along the tracks and several individuals approach while waiting for the train asking for money. Can the appropriate human services personnel make contact with those living in said tents?

  VRE Response
  Thanks for the question Roxanne, we'll share your comments with Prince William County.

• David from Burke VA asks
  As Spring comes, birds are waking up. It is getting messy under some of the station shelters. Rolling Road is getting particularly gross with bird droppings near ticket kiosks. Is there any plan to clean up these areas or mitigate nesting? Thanks!

  VRE Response
  Thanks David, we'll ask the facilities maintenance contractors to address the mess and look for a fix to help minimize the issue moving forward.

Good afternoon and welcome to the April edition of the Online Forum.  As always, VRE staff along with representatives from Keolis, Amtrak, and CSX are here to answer your questions.  We already have lots of questions, so let’s get started.