Rod Hall, Candidate for VA-HD-31, made the following statement on Governor Northam’s newly announced initiative to expand VRE, CSX and Amtrak services, improving passenger and commuter rail travel in Virginia. ​Earlier today, Northam was joined by Senator Mark Warner and U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg on the announcement.

On the initiative, Hall said “As a member of the Virginia Passenger Rail Authority, I am absolutely delighted by today’s announcement formalizing the $3.7 billion Virginia Passenger Rail Initiative. Today’s agreement announced by Governor Northam, alongside key rail stakeholders like Amtrak, CSX, and our own Virginia Railway Express (VRE), places the Commonwealth on a fast track to modernizing our commuter, passenger, and freight rail service across the Commonwealth.

I’m particularly pleased by what this agreement will mean for the residents of the 31st that depend on VRE for their day to day commuting needs. The agreement includes $1.7 billion for improvements to the Long Bridge across the Potomac, a major bottleneck for rail service along the eastern seaboard. With these improvements, passenger and commuter rail will have their own dedicated lanes which will yield greater efficiencies and increased services – a huge win for working families. For the first time in the history of VRE, we will soon see weekend service and multi-directional service as a direct result of this forward-leaning initiative.”

Hall previous served under former President Obama to serve as head of legislative affairs at the Federal Aviation Administration. He is also a policy advisor in the Washington Office of K&L Gates, LLP. His practice focuses on transportation and infrastructure issues.