LYNCHBURG, Va. – Virginia Senator Mark Warner said he’s holding Amtrak accountable after a train was delayed overnight in Lynchburg.
As we reported last month, more than 200 passengers were left stranded for more than 24 hours in the Hill City due to downed trees and power lines from a winter storm.
The Democratic Senator said he recently received a briefing from Amtrak, where the company admitted they made a mistake.
Warner is demanding better customer service and communication during emergencies, especially after he pushed for rail service to receive $66 billion from the infrastructure law.
“What I’ve got to stay on [Amtrak about] is make sure this doesn’t happen again. For years, Amtrak has said, ‘We’re underfunded. We don’t have the resources.’ Well, the Congress and the president and the bipartisan way has stepped up now and provided a record amount of new investment in Amtrak,” said Warner.
He said that money should allow Amtrak to have better resources.
“We’ve now provided that long-overdue funding. What I expect out of these public officials—frankly if you work for Amtrak you’re working for the public—is you have to do a better job on customer service. You have to do better when there is an emergency.”
Senator Warner told 10 News that those passengers will be allowed to apply for a voucher as compensation.
See our previous reporting below: