The Manassas Line is a
Virginia Railway Express commuter line that extends from
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
to
Bristow, Virginia
Bristow is an unincorporated community of Prince William County in Northern Virginia about from Washington, D.C. In 2014, Bristow's postal area population was 29,346, a 287% increase since 2000; however, the Bristow community is formally incl ...
. The first of VRE's two lines, with service beginning on June 22, 1992, the line operates on tracks owned by
CSX Transportation (the
RF&P Subdivision
The RF&P Subdivision is a railroad line owned and operated by CSX Transportation. It runs from Washington, D.C., to Richmond, Virginia, over lines previously owned by the Pennsylvania Railroad and the Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad. ...
) and
Norfolk Southern Railway (the
Washington District
The Washington District is a Norfolk Southern Railway line in the U.S. state of Virginia that connects Alexandria, Virginia, Alexandria and Lynchburg, Virginia, Lynchburg. Most of the line was originally built from 1850 to 1860 by the Orange and ...
).
History
The line south of
Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria is an independent city in the northern region of the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of downtown Washington, D.C.
In 2020, the population was 159,467. ...
, was once owned by
Southern Railway, whose ''Crescent'' train stopped at the line's Alexandria and stations. When U.S. intercity passenger service was taken over by
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada ...
, the new railroad continued the service between and
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
.
In 1984, planning began for a commuter rail service for the area. Eight years later, after many new stations were constructed, Virginia Railway Express began operating trains on the line on June 22, 1992.
In 2009, Amtrak extended its service south to Lynchburg, bringing more trains to Manassas and .
In 2017, VRE began a $2.8 million study of expansion to the Broad Run station and layover facility that would allow additional Manassas Line service.
Stations list
References
See also
*
Fredericksburg Line
{{Transit in NOVA
Rail infrastructure in Virginia
Rail infrastructure in Washington, D.C.
1992 establishments in Virginia