Derailment impacts east coast travel

11:30 a.m. Update

Quantico, Va. – The coal train that derailed Thursday at Quantico has spurred cancellations and delays for most of the east coast.

Thousands of Amtrak passengers were left stranded overnight as crews worked to clean up the seven coal cars that toppled over about 3 p.m. Thursday.

The crash crippled rail service for Amtrak, forcing officials to cancel the Northwest Regional Train from Norfolk, Richmond and Washington, the Auto Train from Lorton to Sandord, Fla. as well as other trains to from New York Charlotte, N.C. and Miami.

Virginia Railway Express maintains they will not run trains on its Fredericsksburg line this afternoon, after halting all service on the line this morning.

Trains on VRE’s Manassas line operated on schedule Friday.

When the derailment occurred, the coal cars laid mangled on the tracks, and the tracks themselves were also damaged – some of them pointing directly up toward the sky.

CSX, which owns the tracks, has not returned a request for comment today.

It’s unclear when the tracks will be repaired. 

Amtrak passengers hoping to travel south of Washington today are being asked to call 1-800-USA-RAIL before they leave for the rail station.

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Quantico, Va. – Virginia Railway Express has canceled all trains on its Fredericksburg line on Friday after a coal train derailment.

The coal train derailed at Quantico during Thursday’s rush hour, and it not only made it tough for Virginia Railway Express commuters, it also crippled Amtrak service.

The 79-car freight train was traveling from Cumberland, Md. to Norfolk when it derailed about 3 p.m.

No one was injured, but seven cars laid on the railroad tracks mangled, as railroad crews worked to assess the damage and mount the early stages of a cleanup.

Though a round of severe storms containing high winds and heavy downpours passed through the region when the cars left the tracks, it’s not clear what caused the derailment.

A CSX spokesman said an investigation would be launched to determine the cause of the derailment.

The incident stalled VRE trains that normally use the Fredericksburg line to ferry commuter’s home from Washington.

Those who were bound for Woodbridge were allowed to take the train as far south as Rippon, one station north of Quantico. Anyone headed to Quantico or points south were told to exit the trains at Franconia-Springfield VRE station, where buses were waiting for them to take them the rest of the way home.

“We chose the Franconia-Springfield station because we have shelter there for people to stand under, and the buses have easy access to the [High Occupancy Vehicle] lanes, so they can easily enter 95 and head south,” said VRE spokesman Mark Roeber.

Anyone who wanted to use Amtrak to travel south of Washington on Thursday night was also out of luck.

The national passenger rail service told riders to call ahead before coming to the train station.

“No trains are moving south of Washington,” said Amtrak spokeswoman Karina Romero. “For those who were already traveling with us, we are trying to find buses to take the passengers transport passengers.”

The derailment comes about a month after another CSX coal train derailed in Stafford County.

Cars on that train left the tracks near Ferry Farm, causing traffic tie ups on nearby Va. 3.