BALTIMORE — Amtrak is going to court to acquire four small pieces of land in West Baltimore it says it needs for the project to replace the aging Baltimore & Potomac Tunnel, one of the most significant bottlenecks on the Northeast Corridor.
The Washington Post reports the company has filed suit to acquire the properties ‚ all 0.025 acres (about 1,089 square feet) or less, through eminent domain, and that the company deposited about $267,500 with the court, saying that was the combined value of the properties and “just compensation” based on fair market value.
The suit outlines Amtrak’s efforts to buy the properties, including a purchase agreement for one property that fell through. News reports do not indicate why Amtrak needs the land, but project maps place the property near the South Portal of the new tunnel.
The Baltimore Banner reports that the City of Baltimore and state of Maryland are named as defendants because of the possibilities that city or state entities might have liens against the properties involved. It says Amtrak values the individual properties at amounts ranging from $52,000 to $85,000.
The project to replace the 150-year-old B&P tunnel — actually three separate tunnels totaling 1.4 miles — began with preliminary work in March [see “Amtrak set to start early work …,” Trains News Wire, March 9, 2023]. The new Frederick Douglass Tunnel is expected to cost about $6 billion, and will triple capacity while eliminating sharp curves that currently limit top speeds to 30 mph. President Joe Biden said earlier this year the federal government would contribute more than $4 billion toward the project [see “B&P Tunnel to receive more than $4 billion …,” News Wire, Jan. 30, 2023].
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