President Donald Trump’s administration is taking management of Union Station away from Amtrak in the latest example of the federal government exerting its power over the nation’s capital.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffyannounced the takeover Wednesday alongside Amtrak President Roger Harris at Washington’s main transportation hub during the launch of an updated version of the rail service’s Acela train.
Union Station, in walking distance from the Capitol, has “fallen into disrepair” when it should be a “point of pride” for the District of Columbia, Duffy said. He said the Republican administration’s move would help beautify the landmark in an economical way and was in line with Trump’s vision.
“He wants Union Station to be beautiful again. He wants transit to be safe again. And he wants our nation’s capital to be great again. And today is part of that,” Duffy said.
It’s Trump’s latest attempt to put the city under his control. In recent weeks, Trump has increased the number of federal law enforcement and immigration agents on city streets while also taking over the Metropolitan Police Department and activating thousands of National Guard members. Last week, Trump said he wants $2 billion from Congress to beautify Washington.
Duffy said the federal government can do a better job managing the train station and attract more tenants and generate more revenue that will be spent on upgrading the station, which opened in 1907.
Since then, the cavernous Roman-columned building has been through multiple management changes and numerous ups and downs regarding its cleanliness, safety and state of repair.
National Guard troops have patrolled in and around Union Station ever since Trump announced the anti-crime effort this month. Vice President JD Vance and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth were shouted down by opponents of the federal intervention when they visited with troops there last week.
Duffy had pressed Amtrak about crime at the station in a March letter to its chief operating officer and requested an updated plan on how it intended to improve public safety there.
The deputy transportation secretary, Steve Bradbury, cited a new roof and new public restrooms among $170 million in upgrades that he said are needed at the station.
Amtrak’s new high-speed train, the NextGen Acela, will start serving the Northeast Corridor on Thursday, said Harris, Amtrak’s president. The trains can travel at speeds of up to 160 mph, about 10 mph faster than the high-speed train it is replacing. Duffy and the Amtrak officials from the event boarded one of the new high-speed trains after the event for an inaugural ride to New York’s Penn Station.
Union Station has had a history of ups and downs during its nearly 120-year history.
In 1981, after rain started pouring through the ceiling, the National Park Service, which has jurisdiction over some of the area surrounding the station, declared the building unsafe. The station was closed for five years for renovation and President Ronald Reagan signed the Union Station Redevelopment Act to help fund and organize its comeback.
More recently, the building fell on relatively hard times during the COVID pandemic. Foot traffic plummeted after passengers shunned mass transit while multiple shops closed at the station. But the past three years have witnessed a bit of a comeback.
The station has occasionally been a magnet for homeless individuals seeking shelter inside or camping in tents on Columbus Circle in front of the building. The proliferation of tents prompted the Park Service to clear the encampment in front of the station in June 2022.
Control and management of the physical building also have shifted over the years.
By Agencies
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