Washington Terminal Company
The Washington Terminal Company (reporting mark WATC) is a corporation created in Washington, D.C., USA, to provide support to railroads using Washington's Union Station. It was established in 1901 by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad and the Pennsylvania Railroad-controlled Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington Railroad.[1] Today, its operations are run by Amtrak.
The Washington Terminal Company owned and operated Union Station (opened in 1907) and about 5 miles (8.0 km) of track in the Washington area, providing switching services for passenger trains using the station or passing through the area:
- Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O)
- Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR)
- Chesapeake and Ohio Railway (C&O)
- Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad (RF&P)
- Southern Railway (SOU)
- Atlantic Coast Line Railroad (ACL)
- Seaboard Air Line Railroad (SAL)
In 1981, Amtrak took over the terminal company's operations.[2] Still, the Washington Terminal Company remains a separate legal entity, and unlike Amtrak, it is not exempt from the Interstate Commerce Act. This allowed Virginia Railway Express to threaten a filing to the Surface Transportation Board to enforce its right to access when Amtrak tried to oust VRE from Union Station after VRE said they would not automatically re-hire Amtrak as its operating contractor. Faced with this action, Amtrak backed down.
See also
- First Street Tunnel
- List of Washington, D.C. railroads
References
- ↑ Tindall, William (1914). Standard History of the City of Washington. Knoxville, TN: H.W. Crew. p. 418. Retrieved 2009-09-16.
- ↑ Amtrak (2007)."Nation’s Capital Marks 100 Years of Train Service." Amtrak Ink (newsletter). October 2007. p.3.