Baltimore-DC train traffic still slow after storm

BALTIMORE - Train traffic between Baltimore and Washington resumed late Tuesday after being halted for an hour after a thunderstorm felled a tree that brought down power lines and fell on tracks, transit officials said, but many passengers were still experiencing significant delays late in the evening.

Maryland Transit Administration spokesman Terry Owens said about 8:45 p.m. Tuesday, a storm felled a tree that knocked out power and blocked the two of the three tracks just south of Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport.

Owens said a MARC train was reversed and sent to Odenton, where buses would take passengers to Baltimore.

Karina Romero, spokeswoman for Amtrak, said the tree brought down the caternary, or overhead, wires that feed electricity to the locomotives. Service between Baltimore and Washington was halted until crews could clear the tracks, which took about an hour, when one track was open.

Romero said northbound trains were being held in Washington; southbound trains were being held in Philadelphia to avoid overwhelming Baltimore's Penn Station.

With one track open, Romero said, trains would be traveling at restricted speeds because signals were still down. She said travelers should expect significant delays.

Romero said an empty MARC train was being brought to transport some stranded passengers.

On Monday, passengers were stranded on a broken down MARC train for two hours. Two people were taken to hospitals and others were treated for heat-related problems. The incident was being investigated, the MARC administrator said.

The weather also caused problems in Washington, where fire officials said several cars were damaged when a tree fell on Connecticut Avenue near Q Street.