Washington Union Station renovation gets $466 million from US DOT

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Dive Brief:

• Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced a $466 million investment in Washington Union Station in the District of Columbia on Thursday.
• The grants are part of a program to modernize the station and improve the customer experience for the 37 million people who pass through it each year, according to Amtrak and a news release from the U.S. Department of Transportation.
• “From basic structural repairs to beautiful expanded passenger vestiges, today’s historic investment in Union Station will ensure Washington DC has the world-class transit hub that all residents, commuters and tourists deserve,” Duffy said in a statement.

Diving knowledge:

The Transportation Department’s action is part of President Donald Trump’s effort to beautify the nation’s capital, as outlined in a March 2025 executive order, Duffy said during an event Thursday to celebrate the Interior Department’s restoration of the Columbus Circle fountain.

“We’re going to fix the roof, improve the passenger lounges, the Amtrak lounge and the ticketing experience,” Duffy said. “We will maximize the station’s revenue potential with retail, with parking, with office space, with digital signage and more. We will improve security and invest in family-friendly infrastructure.”

The DOT took control of the nearly 120-year-old Union Station by an act of Congress in 1981 at a time when the station had fallen into disrepair. Last year, DOT restructured its longstanding management agreement with Union Station Redevelopment Corporation, a nonprofit organization established by Congress in 1983, giving DOT the lead role in the station’s redevelopment.

“This USDOT funding represents an important milestone in the ongoing revitalization of Washington Union Station,” Amtrak President Roger Harris said in a statement. Washington is Amtrak’s second busiest train station.

In addition to Amtrak, the station serves Maryland Transit Authority commuter trains and Virginia Railway Express, as well as Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority trains and buses. The station also houses an intercity bus terminal.

Separately, a House Appropriations subcommittee last week approved legislation that includes $70 million for the redevelopment of Union Station.