Roanoke is the Best Train Vacation in Virginia
On October 1, 2009, Amtrak extended its Northeast (NE) service from DC to Lynchburg. Because of its success, on July 19, 2011, Roanoke initiated the Smart Way Connector Bus (www.smartwaybus.com), linking Amtrak's NE Lynchburg Train from Lynchburg to Roanoke (daily) and VA Tech/Blacksburg (Fri - Sun).
Because of these two new services, Roanoke is now the best train vacation in Virginia, one that is very accessible from Washington, D.C., the entire Northeast US, and world wide through easy connections from DC's three (3) airports:
National: Take subway from airport for two stops to Alexandria Amtrak Station.
BWI: Take short shuttle bus from airport to Amtrak BWI Station.
Dulles: Take Bus 5A ($6 cash or Smarttrip) from airport to Roslyn and take subway to Alexandria Amtrak Station.
Follow this link for all the details for a Roanoke Train Vacation.
Roanoke: Virginia's Best Train Vacation
Biography
I grew up in Pine Ridge, about one mile from the Fairfax Hospital, in Fairfax County, Virginia. In about 1952, I remember traveling on the Washington and Old Dominion (W&OD) Railroad (the "Virginia Creeper") from Falls Church to Roslyn. This train ran from Bluemont to Roslyn and Alexandria, VA, with a branch to Great Falls, which ceased operations earlier. I graduated from Fairfax High School (1963), the College of William and Mary, BS, Biology (1968) and the University of Connecticut, MS, Zoology (1974).
I spent a year (1966-1967) working for the Smithsonian Institution in Venezuela collecting mammals and parasites. I was in the US Army (1969-1971) and spent a year in Japan, outside Toyko. That was first experience with a well run train system and with a ride on their Bullet Train, which traveled at 130 mph at the time. I have worked for the Office of Pesticide Programs at the Environmental Protection Agency for 36 years (1973 to 2009). During that period, I have ridden the Virginia Railway Express (VRE), a Washington/Virginia commuter rail system since its beginning in 1992. Now I am paying more interest in Amtrak and want to stimulate ridership and new service, especially in Virginia. I am a member of the Virginia Association of Railway Patrons (VARP), www.varprail.org, which has been promoting passenger rail in the state for 30 years and a member of Cvillerail, www.Cvillerail.org, which was major reason for the establishment of the new Amtrak Train to Lynchburg, the subject of this blog.
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