Is Maryland getting serious about MARC trains to Virginia?

If Maryland lawmakers consider expanding their state’s commuter train service into Virginia, they’ll find that some stubborn hurdles still stand in the way—but also that the prospects suddenly look brighter than at any time in recent memory.

A new bill, expected to be introduced in the Maryland General Assembly Wednesday, aims to turn the long-held rail commuter’s dream into reality. The bill, by Delegate Jared Solomon (D-Montgomery), calls for Maryland to begin negotiating with DC and Virginia to allow MARC trains to run through DC’s Union Station and into Alexandria and Crystal City.

Since at least 2007, commuters and planners in Maryland and Virginia have dreamed of commuter rail that crosses state lines. As it stands now, Maryland’s MARC trains and Virginia’s VRE trains both stop at Union Station, though some riders can use their VRE ticket on Amtrak as well.

There are a few reasons why it is this way, and they’re pretty significant. The systems have different types of railcars, the platforms stand at different levels, and the two systems’ tracks don’t align at Union Station. On top of that, there aren’t enough platforms or tracks to support additional trains, especially traversing the Potomac River—and that’s to say nothing of how money and politics would factor in to making any changes.

“We obviously can’t mandate that they create run-through service because we don’t have any authority to force the Commonwealth of Virginia to the table for anything,” Solomon said. Nor would either state budget for any new service until negotiations resulted in a specific, concrete agreement.

But a lot has happened in recent years to change the calculus, and for the first time in a very long time, both states seem eager to get something done.

For one thing, the impending arrival of Amazon’s HQ2 in “National Landing” strengthens Maryland’s case for helping its workers get to Crystal City. For another, Virginia recently agreed to buy and expand the Long Bridge, meaning more trains will eventually be able to pass through what is currently a major rail bottleneck at the Potomac River. Almost all existing passenger rail over the river uses the bridge, which is currently owned by railroad operator CSX, and the need to secure funding to replace it has posed a hurdle to bills like Solomon’s.

“The constant refrain in this state … as long as I’ve ever been talking about this is, ‘We can’t do anything to expand MARC service, CSX won’t let us, it’s not possible.’ And I think we have a wonderful case study to show that that is absolutely wrong,” Solomon said. “If Virginia can do it, I don’t know why we can’t.”

But even before construction wraps up on the new Long Bridge sometime later this decade, there is some potential to test out trans-Potomac commuter rail, says Joe McAndrew, the director of transportation policy at the Greater Washington Partnership.

“In the near term, there’s opportunities with the existing (MARC) fleet to look at providing run-through service on a smaller scale to Northern Virginia”, McAndrew said.

A study like the one proposed by Solomon’s bill would still face obstacles: CSX would demand track access fees, the Federal Railroad Administration would have to grant approval, and there would be necessary investments in track replacement, positive train control, labor contracts and training. But McAndrew said it makes sense to study feasibility before the Long Bridge is finished.

“It’s not an insurmountable feat,” McAndrew said. “The answer may come back that the return on investment doesn’t make sense to run trains today, before the Long Bridge is complete. But undoubtedly the questions that are going to be asked should put you in position so that you’re running trains the first day you can.”

McAndrew also said that by enabling commuters to use both Maryland and Virginia’s existing rail systems more efficiently, running MARC trains into Virginia would deepen and expand the potential labor pool employers in Northern Virginia like Amazon and employers closer to Baltimore Penn Station can use.

“That is important for a labor pool,” McAndrew said. “Take a family that is based at Fort Meade and one of the family members gets relocated to say, Quantico. If you look at a map, both of them sit close to a MARC or VRE station. But today that commute would be unbearable to try to take two systems that just don’t sync up.”

As for Solomon, his hope is that the prospect of MARC service to Virginia can help change the state’s thinking on what’s possible with transportation planning, giving it a firmer competitive footing with its southern neighbor while also forming broader partnerships with it.

“Just across the river, a month ago, Virginia somehow managed to negotiate a $4 billion rail expansion with CSX and Amtrak … to dramatically enhance rail access across their state. If Virginia can do it, I don’t know why we can’t,” Solomon said. “Everybody always says ‘in our region, Virginia is beating the pants off of us on economic development.’ Well, let’s do what Virginia is doing and do the same kind of rail expansion across Maryland.”