Upcoming Amtrak construction projects along the heavily-traveled Northeast Corridor between Baltimore and Washington, D.C. will impact MARC Penn Line service beginning on April 29. Amtrak’s planned construction work will require complete track closures from 11:15 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. and is expected to continue through November 2024. As a result, the Maryland Transit Administration will need to temporarily cancel Penn Line Train 401, which departs at 4:15 a.m. from Baltimore to Washington, D.C. In addition, the agency will modify departure times of two early morning and two late evening trains.
“We recognize the significant impact these service adjustments will have, and we appreciate customers’ patience as Amtrak undertakes these necessary projects,” said Maryland Transit Administrator Holly Arnold. “While an inconvenience, ultimately, these efforts will increase reliability for our riders.”
MARC Train will return to current service schedules when Amtrak construction ends. A summary of the weekday MARC Penn Line schedule changes follows.
Morning service from Baltimore to Washington D.C.:
Train 401 (4:15a.m. departure) will not operate.
Train 403 (4:40 a.m. departure) will operate 20 minutes later at 5:00 a.m.
Morning service from Washington, D.C. to Baltimore:
Train 502 (6:15 a.m. departure) will depart 5 minutes later at 6:20 a.m.
Late evening service, Monday-Thursday:
Train 453 (9:35 p.m. departure from Baltimore to Washington) will depart 50 minutes earlier at 8:45 p.m. and will be noted as Train 455 on the new schedule.
Train 452 (10:55 p.m. departure from Washington to Baltimore) will depart 50 minutes earlier at 10:05 p.m. and will be noted as Train 454 on the new schedule.
Late evening service on Fridays and weekend service will not be affected.
This is the first year of Amtrak’s three-year construction plan. When completed, the Amtrak construction work will improve the travel experience for Amtrak and MARC riders. Signal system upgrades will increase train capacity and enable faster speeds to potentially shorten travel time. Upgrades to the catenary system will help to decrease delays by minimizing the effect of temperature changes on the wires. The catenary upgrade will also facilitate the transition of the MARC Penn Line to all-electric trains upon completion of the Frederick Douglass Tunnel Program. The New Carrollton station platform is also scheduled for improvements, as is the overhead walkway at BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport station.
The post Amtrak NEC Track Improvements will affect MARC Penn Line Service appeared first on Railpace Newsmagazine.
