Washington Union Station Expansion Project

The Union Station Redevelopment Corporation (USRC), with project partner Amtrak, commissioned BBB/Grimshaw, Arup, and VHB to create a new vision for Washington Union Station (WUS), an iconic 19th-century station, designed by Daniel Burnham, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The station currently serves as a terminal for long-distance, intercity, and commuter trains, connecting over 40 million people annually, and is Amtrak’s second busiest location in the United States as well as the District’s primary intercity bus terminal. BBB led the extensive planning, public engagement, environmental and historical preservation compliance, and secured approvals from the US Commission of Fine Arts and National Capital Planning Commission for a proposed expansion that addresses rapidly growing ridership and multimodal needs.

The Station Expansion Project enables the historic preservation of an iconic building in a sensitive context and provides an opportunity for stewardship of the station’s surrounding neighborhoods. The design, released in renderings provided by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), anticipates private development in the airspace above the tracks, as well as improved vehicular, bike, and pedestrian access. Adjustments to pick-up and drop-off zones provide safer connections and reduce congestion off Columbus Circle and in the surrounding neighborhoods. Subsurface parking frees up surface-level areas for high-quality civic spaces.

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