Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin broke ground on the highly-anticipated New River Valley Rail Project in Christiansburg. 

As part of the Virginia Passenger Rail Authority’s (VPRA) Transforming Rail in Virginia (TRV) initiative, the New River Valley Project encompasses railroad infrastructure upgrades, which will allow VPRA to extend its Amtrak Virginia service from Roanoke to Christiansburg and return passenger rail service to the New River Valley for the first time since 1979.

VPRA’s New River Valley Project

The New River Valley Project includes:

• A new station platform with canopy.

• Parking lot and access roads.

• Track improvements and updated signaling system.

• An Amtrak layover facility near Radford.

The extension of service to Christiansburg will be via Norfolk Southern’s main line (N-Line), the result of an agreement between VPRA and Norfolk Southern completed last September through which VPRA purchased the Manassas Line and gained access to the N-Line. 

By expanding service from Roanoke to Christiansburg on the N-Line, VPRA will use existing infrastructure with a focus on developing a station stop at the Cambria site which previously served the community from 1904 to 1979. The project will also enhance Norfolk Southern’s freight service through the area.

The New River Valley Station

The New River Valley Passenger Rail Station Authority — created by the Virginia General Assembly in 2021 — has the lead in the renovation of the historic Christiansburg station building at Cambria. It will be called the New River Valley Station and renovations are expected to begin in 2027.

The estimated cost of VPRA’s New River Valley Project is $264.5 million. Preliminary construction began in late February 2025 with full construction commencing this spring.

Amtrak Virginia service is expected to begin in 2027 with two daily roundtrips between Christiansburg and Washington, D.C., with stops in Roanoke, Lynchburg, Charlottesville, Culpeper, Manassas, Burke Centre, and Alexandria. 

Trip times are estimated to be 50 minutes between Christiansburg and Roanoke and just under six hours between Christiansburg and Washington, D.C. 

From Washington, D.C., the service will continue onto Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor to Philadelphia, New York, Boston and points in-between.

“We are witnessing a remarkable resurgence of passenger rail in the Commonwealth,” Tiffany Robinson, Director of the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation, said. “Virginia is already home to some of the busiest Amtrak stations in the Southeast, and we continue to see record ridership year after year. I’m proud of DRPT’s partnership with the Virginia Passenger Rail Authority on this transformative project, and I’m excited to see the New River Valley take its place in the growing future of passenger rail across the Commonwealth.”

The Roanoke Corridor

One of VPRA’s four corridors of service, the Roanoke corridor began with one daily roundtrip between Lynchburg and Washington, DC, in 2009. 

Since that time, the service was extended from Lynchburg to Roanoke and increased from one daily roundtrip to two daily roundtrips. Ridership along the corridor has grown from just over 100,000 between Lynchburg and Washington that first year to just over 343,000 between Roanoke and Washington last year.

VPRA was established in 2020 to promote, sustain, and expand the availability of passenger and commuter rail service in the Commonwealth. 

VPRA is committed to delivering and expanding its state-supported Amtrak Virginia passenger rail service. The Commonwealth of Virginia first launched state-supported service in 2009 with one roundtrip between Lynchburg, Va., and Washington, DC. 

Since that time, the Commonwealth’s service has grown to include eight roundtrips daily along four corridors with stops at 17 stations in Virginia and one in Washington, DC.