Overview
- Amtrak will fully shut the A‑Interlocking junction in the First Street Tunnel for a concentrated nine‑day rebuild so crews can remove and replace end‑of‑life track components that now force a 10‑mph speed restriction.
- Work will include installation of two double‑slip switches, replacement of a diamond rail crossing, new electric switch machines, ballast renewal and drainage fixes, and crews will work around the clock to complete the job within the outage window.
- To preserve passenger connections, Amtrak will truncate or reroute many southbound services, run timed bus bridges between Alexandria and Union Station and operate express buses from Virginia cities to Washington.
- Regional coordination is extensive: the Virginia Passenger Rail Authority and VRE will run altered schedules, VRE trains will not reach Union Station during the outage, and agencies will offer rebooking and customer assistance.
- Rail leaders say the short, planned disruption aims to prevent future unplanned outages, remove the slow order at the junction and improve long‑term reliability and capacity for growing passenger service on the D.C.‑Virginia corridor.