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CSX Virginia Avenue Tunnel Expansion and Renewal Project


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#21 CNJRoss

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Posted 27 May 2015 - 02:50 PM

HillNow.com "Morning Rundown," 5/27:

Virginia Ave. Tunnel Process Will Continue — Judge Christopher Cooper has denied an appeal by the Committee of 100 on the Federal City of a previous decision by the judge that will allow CSX Corporation to continue the construction on the Virginia Avenue Tunnel. C100 has filed a separate lawsuit to stop the construction.

 



#22 CNJRoss

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Posted 30 May 2015 - 04:40 PM

The Washington Post, 5/28:
 

Opponents of Virginia Avenue Tunnel project lose again

 

Southeast D.C. residents opposed to the reconstruction of the Virginia Avenue Tunnel have lost another bid to  block the project.

 

For the second time, a District Court judge has denied a petition seeking to halt the $170-million project. And Wednesday, the U.S. Court of Appeals also denied a request for an emergency stay.

 

With no court intervention, the neighbors’ hopes of stopping the construction while it’s still in the early phase are nearly doomed.

 

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#23 CNJRoss

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Posted 30 May 2015 - 04:44 PM

DCist, 5/28:
 

CSX Begins Major Construction Work On Virginia Avenue Tunnel

 

It looks like Southeast residents opposed to a proposed expansion of the Virginia Avenue Tunnel are just about out of luck.

 

CSX announced today that they have begun the major construction phase of the project, which entails drilling holes for pilings near 2nd and H Streets SE. In the next few weeks, they'll do the same on the other end of the project near 11th and M Streets SE to support a temporary retaining wall that is needed before they can build the tunnel's new permanent structures.  .  .  .

 

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#24 CNJRoss

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Posted 11 June 2015 - 03:45 PM

jdland.com, 6/10:

 

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The meat of the Virginia Avenue Tunnel expansion project appears to be edging closer, as CSX sent out an announcement today with a preliminary heads up that the first full "for the duration" closures could happen by the end of June:

 
* Virginia Avenue between 2nd and 3rd Streets, SE, will close to traffic and parking "as soon as Monday, June 22."
* Virginia Avenue between 4th and 5th Streets, SE, will close to traffic and parking "as soon as Monday, June 29."

 

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#25 CNJRoss

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Posted 18 June 2015 - 03:25 PM

Virginia Avenue Project Team email, 6/18:

 

Subj:  Environmental Monitoring, Community Mitigation Fund Criteria, Coffee with Chuck

 

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Dear Neighbors, 

The Virginia Avenue Tunnel Project team would like to share the following updates about to the project’s environmental monitoring program, a recent announcement by the Community Mitigation Fund committee and this week’s Coffee with Chuck. 

Environmental Monitoring 

As part of our efforts to maintain a safe, secure project environment throughout the reconstruction of the Virginia Avenue Tunnel, we are conducting comprehensive monitoring program that measures and records noise, vibration and air quality near the site. 

To help explain these processes, we have created a new section on the project website dedicated to environmental monitoring. This webpage includes supplemental information about noise, vibration and air quality, more details on CSX’s monitoring process and an archive of the monthly monitoring reports.

The May 2015 summary reports on noisevibration and air-quality monitoring are now available. We encourage you to visit the environmental monitoring page as you are reviewing the reports for helpful background information. 

Community Mitigation Fund Criteria for Grant Applications 

The CSX VAT Community Mitigation Fund Committee and Near Southeast Community Partners today announced that the proposed criteria for funding applications is available for public comments. The Committee, which is made up of volunteers who reside or work in ANC 6B and 6D, developed the proposed criteria with the goal of enhancing the community impacted by the Virginia Avenue Tunnel Project and offsetting temporary inconvenience caused by construction. The comment period closes June 30, 2015. To review the criteria and submit a comment, please click here

Coffee with Chuck 

Thank you to everyone who attended Coffee with Chuck Wednesday morning. At the meeting Chuck and the project team discussed construction activities and street closures and answered questions from residents. For those who weren’t able to attend, the presentation is available on the project website. Please click here

Upcoming Coffee with Chuck sessions will be held on Thursday, July 23; Wednesday, August 19; and Wednesday, September 30. Additional details will be provided in the coming weeks and months. We hope you can join us.

We appreciate your interest in the Virginia Avenue Tunnel Reconstruction Project. For more information, we encourage you to visit www.virginiaavenuetunnel.com, stop by the CSX Community Office or call CSX at (800) 494-1049. 

Thank you.

Sincerely, 

Virginia Avenue Project Team

 

 

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#26 CNJRoss

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Posted 28 June 2015 - 07:41 PM

Virginia Avenue Project Team email, 6/26:

 

 

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Dear Neighbors:

CSX remains committed to providing you with the most current information available about work on the Virginia Avenue Tunnel project. Following are updates on recently announced efforts that are underway in the vicinity of the tunnel.

Beginning Monday, 6/29, Daytime Lane Closures on Virginia Ave. between 5th and 7th Street

Our work on Virginia Avenue between 5th Street and 7th Street, S.E., was delayed. We now anticipate that, beginning Monday, June 29, temporary lane closures on eastbound Virginia Avenue between 5th and 7th Streets will occur each day between 9:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. These temporary closings are necessary to allow for additional utility-relocation work and installation of temporary street lighting. This work is expected to continue for approximately two to three (2-3) weeks.

Update on Closing of Virginia Ave. between 4th Street and 5th Street

Also next week we expect to completely close Virginia Avenue between 4th Street and 5th Street. This closing will occur on or about Wednesday, July 1, and will last for the duration of the project. It is necessary for construction of the new tunnel. Pedestrians and drivers should expect to follow detours around the closed section of Virginia Avenue, primarily by using K Street S.E. for eastbound travel between 4th and 5th Streets.

Virginia Ave. Closed between 2nd Street and 3rd Street

Virginia Avenue between 2nd Street and 3rd Street was closed completely to traffic and parking on Wednesday, June 24. This closure will last through the duration of the tunnel-reconstruction project. Extensive signage is in place to guide drivers around the Virginia Avenue closure at 2nd Street. The recommended alternative route for eastbound travel is east on I Street, south on 4th Street, east on K Street, north on 5th Street and then east on Virginia Avenue.

Post-Construction Restoration of Landscaping

We have heard concerns from several neighbors about CSX’s plans to restore the landscaping, including plantings by residents, in areas that will be disturbed by the construction process.

To clarify, CSX intends to restore the landscaping in the public space areas as they exist today regardless of who installed and maintains them, provided they do not conflict with any District specifications or regulations. This includes replacing landscaping beds, shrubs, flowers and other plants that may be disturbed during the course of construction. We are currently developing a plan to inventory the landscaping and plantings that will be impacted by the project, to ensure we are able to restore the plantings when the project is complete. We will share more information about this process when we have finalized our plan.

The one exception will be the mature trees that are removed. Unfortunately these are only replaceable with smaller trees, which will be done in compliance with the D.C. Urban Forestry Preservation Act and in coordination with the Urban Forestry Administration. 

This commitment is consistent with our restoration obligations under the FHWA Record of Decision for the project, which are described beginning on page 40 of the document (http://ow.ly/OPMzv).

New Text Service Available

CSX has added an additional information option for neighbors: you can now subscribe to a text-message service to receive updates about the project. This is a direct result of a suggestion from a Virginia Avenue neighbor and we are hopeful that it makes it convenient for more neighbors to stay up-to-date. Details about signing up are available here: http://ow.ly/OPI4a.

We appreciate your interest in the Virginia Avenue Tunnel Reconstruction Project. For more information, we encourage you to visit www.virginiaavenuetunnel.com, stop by the CSX Community Office or call CSX at (800) 494-1049.

Thank you. 

Sincerely,
The Virginia Avenue Project Team

 



#27 CNJRoss

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Posted 07 August 2015 - 10:15 AM

The Hill is Home, 8/6:

 

 More Closures and Disruptions from CSX Virginia Avenue Tunnel Construction

 

As we mentioned earlier this week, CSX is moving full steam ahead with the Virginia Avenue Tunnel construction project. More street closures and utility disruptions have been announced that residents of Near Southeast should know about, as well as anyone who drives through the area.

 

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#28 CNJRoss

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Posted 01 October 2015 - 06:26 AM

The Hill is Home, Washington, DC 9/30:

 
New Neighborhood Guide by CSX

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As part of its efforts to support the neighborhood during the Virginia Avenue Tunnel project, CSX has launched The Neighborhood Guide, a mobile-friendly neighborhood guide for Barracks Row and the Capitol Riverfront.

 

Since the project–along with numerous other construction projects south of the freeway–is bringing hundreds of workers to the neighborhood, CSX saw an opportunity to help those workers find and shop at local businesses. CSX partnered with Barracks Row Main Street and the Capitol Riverfront Business Improvement District to ensure that all local businesses are represented.

 

The Neighborhood Guide lets you search for businesses by category )Dining, Lodging, Parking, Attractions, Shopping or Services), set favorites, and call businesses directly from the Guide. Give it a try and leave feedback in the comments!

 

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#29 CNJRoss

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Posted 04 May 2016 - 10:49 PM

CSX email, 5/4/16:

 

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Dear Neighbors:

 

In light of the CSX derailment that occurred near the Rhode Island Metro station on May 1, we want to re-state to you our commitment to protecting the safety of the Virginia Avenue community while we undertake the important work of rebuilding the Virginia Avenue Tunnel.

 

The safety of the communities where we operate and our employees are CSX’s highest priorities. CSX’s commitment to safety is built on a foundation of significant investment in the maintenance and improvement of our infrastructure and equipment, the deployment of technology to monitor the mechanical condition of our equipment, and extensive training of our employees in the safe operation of trains. These investments have helped consistently make CSX one of the nation’s safest freight railroads, and have contributed to an 80 percent reduction in the number of railroad accidents industry-wide since 1980.

 

The company’s processes for transporting hazardous materials comply with all federal regulations, including those of the U.S. Departments of Transportation and Homeland Security. As required by federal regulation, movements of hazardous materials are routed in accordance with an analytical tool that takes into account 27 factors about potential routes. This routing tool assigns weighting to such factors as the distance between shipping points, urban areas traversed, proximity to iconic locations and more than 20 other safety and security considerations to determine the safest and most-secure route for each shipment. The hazardous materials CSX transports are key inputs for many manufacturing processes and consumer goods, and CSX complies with its common carrier obligation to move any freight tendered in the appropriate federally approved rail car.

 

Consistent with the routing tool, CSX does not move certain categories of hazardous materials through the District, including the Virginia Avenue Tunnel. Those categories include materials that are toxic or poisonous by inhalation and certain classes of explosives. CSX does move empty rail cars that may have previously contained such materials through the District, consistent with federal regulations. CSX’s compliance with these rules is regularly audited by the U.S. Department of Transportation, and those audits have confirmed that CSX’s shipments of hazardous materials through the District are in compliance with its regulations. The District’s Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency (HSEMA) also has full access to CSX’s SecureNOW system which provides nearly real-time information on every train and car that transits the District and surrounding region on CSX’s system.

 

In addition, CSX regularly conducts training with first responders to ensure the highest level of coordination and familiarity with railroad equipment and the hazardous materials we carry. While their need to act is rare, we are very appreciative of the District’s first responders’ efforts and glad to see the training executed so efficiently.

 

CSX remains committed to operating freight trains only in enclosed tunnels in front of Virginia Avenue residences during the tunnel-construction process. As you may recall, that commitment reflects community feedback that we received during the tunnel-project approval process, which resulted in a change in the construction sequencing.

 

We hope this information addresses questions you may have about CSX’s operations in the District.

 

If you have any questions about the tunnel project or construction progress, you can reach us by email at VAT@CSX.COM, by phone at (800) 494-1049, or in person at our regularly scheduled community meetings.

 

Sincerely,

 

CSX

 

 

 

 



#30 CNJRoss

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Posted 27 August 2016 - 10:21 AM

Transport Topics, 8/22:
 

 

Port of Virginia on Track for Increased Double-Stack Rail Service 

  

 

There’s light at the end of the tunnel — the Virginia Avenue Tunnel in Washington, D.C., specifically. And it’ll mean more rail cargo can move from Portsmouth more efficiently and economically.

 

Though it’s roughly 200 miles north of Hampton Roads, the aging tunnel affects rail operations at the port’s Virginia International Gateway container terminal. CSX Corp., which owns the single-track tunnel, moves most of its cargo to and from the port through the gateway. While the tunnel provides a passageway for the railroad’s cargo to points north and elsewhere, it can handle only single-stack cargo-container trains because its ceiling is too low.

 

That situation, however, is about to change.

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