December

• Dorothy from Burke, VA asks
  This may be a Fairfax County thing, but in the VRE garage in Burke - there's a bunch of graffiti. Will that be cleaned up? Also, I got dropped off there the other night (missed the last train so got a ride to where I was parked) and it was a little scary in the garage by myself. It made me wonder if it is patrolled or monitored at night (I suspect no, but just curious to ask).

  VRE Response
  Hi Dorothy, it is a FFX County thing, but we'll ask our facilities department to see if they can assist on the graffiti.

• Tom from Manassas asks
  A continuing problem: PLEASE remind the conductors that they must CLOSE the car air-intakes in the afternoon before we go through the tunnel. I made the mistake of sitting upstairs one day last week in one of the last three cars and It was REALLY uncomfortably choking during the tunnel-time.

  VRE Response
  Thanks Tom, it is standard procedure to close the dampers when going through the tunnel.  If you happen to be on a train and notice this not to be the case, please let us know through gotrains@vre.org and we can address it with the specific crew.

• Robert from Spotsylvania VA asks
  While most of your customer base originates from Brooke and further south every time there is significant issues and busses are provided to customers those services tend to stop at Woodbridge/ PWC area. Is there an option I do not know about offered to us further south customers? If not, I noticed Omni is now doing some rides all the way down to near Crossroads will that be in addition in the future?

  VRE Response
  When we need to utilize buses during a service disruption, the buses always service every station south of where we transfer passengers.  We have utilized several of the regional providers, most frequently OmniRide and Fairfax Connector, and we appreciate their assistance.

   

• Keri from Rippon asks
  Is there a plan to address the degraded pavement in the Rippon station driveway?

  VRE Response
  Our Director of Facilities is reaching out to the developer who has completed all or most of the construction there to get repairs made.  No time frame yet.

• Mel from Burke asks
  Thanks for expanding the Toys for Tots collection dates - I missed it for many years when I teleworked on the only collection date but not this year. Last winter, the people that treated the platforms at Burke Centre were so generous with the salt in some places that there were piles of salt on the platform for days after treatment. I don't want the platforms to be icy, but that much salt use is not good for the environment so is it possible for them to be more judicious with the salt or use alternatives that aren't so salty?

  VRE Response
  Thanks Mel, we appreciate the participation in our Toys for Tots drive, and we'll share your comments with our facilities contractors regarding the platform treatments.

• Mary Ann from Manassas Park asks
  Is there help on the train for people with Autism when the train has problem doing bad weather and train malfunctions, because i am a concerned parent?

  VRE Response
  The conductors are there to assist anyone who needs help.  We also have a program of undercover law enforcement officers from around the region on each train if the conductors need additional assistance.

• Kenneth from Spotsylvania, VA asks
  What plans does VRE have to install charging outlets and/or provide Wi-Fi on trains?

  VRE Response
  We do not have any plans to modify the current cars to add charging stations, but the new cars which we have on order will have USB ports for charging cell phones and other devices.  No current plans to add WiFi as we would still be dependent on the spotty coverage of cellular networks.

   

• Sean from Spotsylvania asks
  There seems to be a lot of progress on Track 22 in Washington. When will this track be put in to use? Will this be the "normal" track for VRE trains, or is this just additional capacity for all trains?

  VRE Response
  Track 22 will simply add capacity to the terminal and may be used by VRE or Amtrak trains.  We do not have an official opening date yet from Amtrak but it will likely be shortly after the new year.

• frank from atlanta asks
  when on business train into Union Station I have noticed that we seem to wait for an Amtrak train to exit the 1s t street tunnel. Then we proceeded to US. Is there some kind of restriction of more than one diesel train? Is this due to some ventilation restrictions and if so any plans to mitigate this seemly restriction? Would using electric locos allow more trains?

  VRE Response
  There are only two tracks going into Union Station from Virginia.  Both tracks can be used for trains simultaneously regardless of the direction, one train on each track.  Being held out for an Amtrak train is more likely due to availability of track space in the terminal.

• Nakole from Fredericksburg VA asks
  Is the VRE running on Wednesday 12/6/23? There are no schedules posted

  VRE Response
  Hi Nakole, the issue has been resolved with the schedule in VRE Mobile.  In fact, we will be launching an update to the app soon which will fix the schedule issue permanently, but also enhance other features like Train Status and Alerts.  Stay tuned for information on the update.

   

• Heidi from Fredericksburg. VA asks
  Are they planning to add more handicap parking to Quantico's Station and will a representative from VRE ever come to Quantico so personnel at Quantico that are handicap can apply for the reduced fare? Thank you.

  VRE Response
  Once construction is complete on the station improvement project and we have all the parking open again, the total number of ADA spaces available will be appropriate for the size of the lot and number of total spaces.  You can reach out to Annalee, Lana or Erica at our office (703) 684-1001 for assistance with reduced fare.  All applications may be done digitally or through the mail, but if you need additional assistance, we would be happy to schedule someone to meet you at the station.

   

• Sam from Manassas, Va asks
  Hello- 2 questions: 1- why are there still no announcements telling people on scooters & bicycles to NOT ride on the ramps & platforms? It's dangerous and just asking for a pedestrian to be knocked over and hurt. People can stop on the platform suddenly & a scooter might not be able to stop. 2- are there any plans to extend the roof on the south bound end of the L'Enfant platform? It's crowded under the roof when it rains & snows. Plus it would be nice to have shade in the summer. Thanks.

  VRE Response
  Thanks for the questions Sam.  Conductors can speak to individual riders with scooters if you are seeing a continued issue. Just speak to the conductor on your train and he/she can make sure the person knows not to ride on the platform.  We have no plans to extend the covering on the L'Enfant platform.

Good afternoon and welcome to the final Online Forum for 2023. 

As a reminder, in support of the Marine Corps Reserve’s Toys for Tots, we’re accepting new, unwrapped toys on board our trains through Friday. If you’d like to make a monetary donation visit toysfortots.org, or our conductors will have a QR code for you to scan.

We have representatives from VRE, Keolis, Amtrak and CSX ready to answer your questions and address your comments, so let’s get to it.