Amtrak’s Acela service will offer nonstop weekday trips between D.C. and New York

Travelers on the D.C.–New York Amtrak corridor will have a new, faster option beginning in the fall, the rail company announced Thursday. As of September 23, Acela, Amtrak’s express line, will run nonstop trips between Union Station in D.C. and Penn Station in New York on weekdays. There will be two trips daily, with each lasting roughly two hours and 35 minutes.

“The southbound train will depart [Penn Station] at 6:35 a.m. and is scheduled to arrive at [Union Station] around 9:10 a.m.,” says a release. “The northbound train will depart [Union Station] at 4:30 p.m., and arrive at [Penn Station] around 7:05 p.m.” The trips are about 20 minutes quicker than those between D.C. and New York on the regular Acela Express service.

A quiet car, a cafe car, and first class will be available on the new nonstop offering. Amtrak says it is currently finalizing other amenities and that it will debut new Acela trains in 2021, after testing to begin later in 2019. The company says it will also consider expanding nonstop trips in the future. By contrast, there are eight stops from D.C. to New York on Acela Express.

Amtrak