phenomenologically asked:

I've been taking the NER for 5+ years now, and I've always wondered: do you know why, when trains pass through DC, they have to switch engines leaving or entering VA? I've asked conductors, but they've only said that upon entering VA they have to switch to diesel, but I've never been certain why that is.

Amtrak doesn’t own the tracks south of DC and because of that, we are unable to electrify the tracks like how the tracks on the NEC have been without the permission of the freight companies meaning that as a result the engine has to switch from an electric engine to a diesel engine