CSX completes first phase of new tunnel in D.C.

The Class I railway has completed the first phase of the new Virginia Avenue Tunnel project in Washington, D.C., clearing the way for trains to move double-stacked intermodal freight between Mid-Atlantic seaports and the Midwest on its railroad network.    CSX has competed the first phase of the new Virginia Avenue Tunnel project in Washington, D.C., clearing the way for trains to transport double-stacked intermodal freight between Mid-Atlantic seaports and the Midwest on CSX’s railroad network.
   The Jacksonville, Fla.-based Class I railway said the Virginia Avenue Tunnel is the last of 61 clearance projects that comprise the $850 million National Gateway Initiative, a public-private partnership announced in 2008 to create more-efficient pathways for rail freight between key U.S. markets through investment in critical transportation infrastructure.
   The first CSX freight train passed through the new southern tunnel of the two-tunnel project at 8:00 a.m. last Friday, carrying double-stacked intermodal freight containers between Portsmouth, Va., and its intermodal rail hub in North Baltimore, Ohio, which opened in 2011. Work on the northern tunnel has already begun, and the entire project is expected to be completed on schedule in mid-2018.
   “Clearing the National Gateway for double-stack freight creates more efficient, more environmentally friendly routes to move the essential goods that fuel today’s economy,” said Michael J. Ward, CSX chairman and chief executive officer. Ward added that “the double-stack-cleared National Gateway will allow CSX to better meet the needs of consumers and businesses throughout the eastern U.S. for decades to come.”
   CSX said, “When both tunnels are complete, the Virginia Avenue Tunnel project will relieve a significant Mid-Atlantic rail bottleneck that impacts freight and passenger service in the region as the growing volume of rail traffic has consumed the capacity of the existing infrastructure.”
   The railroad said the project will reduce truck traffic, carbon emissions and wear-and-tear on the region’s highways.
   The project is replacing an existing tunnel, portions of which were first constructed in 1870.