Crowds cheer, politicians crow, as new train to Northeast rolls into Lynchburg

About 250 people, most of them cheering, greeted Amtrak’s Whistle Stop Tour in Lynchburg Wednesday to celebrate today’s start of a second daily train connecting the city to Washington, D.C., and the Northeast.

“Lynchburg is a great city,” Gov. Timothy M. Kaine told the crowd filling the platform and the balcony at Kemper Street Station. “Today it just got a slight bit better.”

The Heritage High School band kept the crowd warmed up during festivities before the ceremonial train arrived, about 15 minutes late.

Kaine rode from Charlottesville to Richmond on the train, along with executives of Amtrak, Norfolk Southern Railway, and Lynchburg civic and business leaders who worked several years to persuade Amtrak and state officials to create and subsidize the route.

Also on the train was former Gov. Linwood Holton, who is Kaine’s father-in-law and a former member of Amtrak’s board of directors.

Holton, 86 and still with a politician’s voice, entertained crowds at the train’s stop in Charlottesville as well as Lynchburg with anecdotes about riding the train from Bristol to Lynchburg during his college days. Trains are becoming important again in the nation’s transportation picture, Holton said.

Del. Shannon Valentine, D-Lynchburg, said the expense of subsidizing the train’s three-year, pilot status is less than the cost of building one mile of new highway.

About $18.5 million in state funds will subsidize the new Lynchburg train and a similar one between Richmond and Washington. Several speakers called the funds “an investment in transportation.”

“Seeing is believing,” Valentine told the crowd, describing work with other legislators, state transportation officials and Amtrak.

Valentine thanked Kaine for listening to her and other legislators. “We would not be here celebrating without him,” she said.

The event was a bit like a campaign rally, with Randolph College Young Democrats holding up signs that said “Thank you, Shannon.” Cheers accompanied the signs.

State Sen. Steve Newman, R-Lynchburg, told the crowd, “It’s now up to us to use it,” with Lynchburg-area people traveling regularly on the train to make it economically feasible.

“Today didn’t just happen,” Newman said. “It goes back many years,” with efforts by several legislators to coordinate the service with Amtrak and Norfolk Southern, which owns the tracks.

A key legislator in the process was state Sen. William Wampler, R-Bristol. “After much negotiation, he has become an advocate for us,” Newman said, with hopes that the new train service will be extended to Roanoke and Bristol on a proposed route called the TransDominion Express.

Wick Moorman, president and CEO of Norfolk Southern, spoke briefly and emphasized the railroad’s partnership with Amtrak and the state and federal governments to improve both freight and passenger rail service.

Joe Boardman, president of Amtrak, saluted the crowd’s enthusiasm. “You have got the enthusiasm of the men and women of Amtrak as well,” Boardman said.

“We now have an administration that gives us support at the national level, and an administration that gives us support at the state level.”

Lynchburg’s new passenger rail service
Departure: 7:38 a.m.
Arrive Washington: 11:20 a.m.
Return to Lynchburg: 8:36 p.m.
Fare: $38 to $74, one way.
Fare to New York: $88 to $173
A discount of up to 25 percent is offered to passengers who book trips by Oct. 31 and travel by Dec. 19. Fares starting at $29 one way were available Wednesday.
Amtrak’s existing service to Lynchburg, via the Crescent route from Washington to New Orleans, leaves the city northbound at 6 a.m. and returns at 10 p.m. daily. Typical fare to Washington is $74 on the Crescent