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The Trump administration is preparing to take control of Union Station, one of the nation’s busiest transit hubs, as part of a broader federal crackdown on crime and public order in Washington, D.C., the Transportation Department confirmed Wednesday.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the department is renegotiating a cooperative agreement with the Union Station Redevelopment Corporation, which currently oversees the historic terminal, along with Amtrak. Formal action reestablishing federal control is expected in September, he said.
The move follows President Donald Trump’s decision earlier this month to deploy National Guard troops across the capital and assume authority over the Metropolitan Police Department, actions the administration has framed as necessary to combat violent crime and homelessness.
Vice President JD Vance visited National Guard troops stationed at Union Station last week, signaling the facility’s role in Trump’s broader campaign to restore federal authority in the city.
Union Station, a century-old landmark just blocks from the U.S. Capitol, has long been managed through a cooperative agreement between the federal government, Amtrak, and private redevelopment entities. But in recent years it has faced mounting challenges, including crime, homelessness and delays in long-promised modernization projects.
The Trump administration has increasingly taken steps to assert federal authority over major transit projects. In April, DOT removed New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority from leading the Penn Station Reconstruction project in Manhattan, placing Amtrak in charge with direct federal backing. Around the same time, the White House forced out Amtrak’s CEO, replacing him with the company’s president, Roger Harris.
While details of the Union Station takeover are still being finalized, the plan is likely to raise tensions with local leaders in Washington, who have already clashed with the administration over the federalization of the city’s police force.
Trump has repeatedly called D.C. officials “grossly incompetent” and argued that restoring federal control is necessary to make the city “safe and prosperous again.”
The White House said Monday that more than 1,000 people have been arrested since federal law enforcement was deployed to Washington, D.C., earlier this month.
Officials reported that 111 firearms have been seized and six gang members taken into custody, including affiliates of MS-13 and Tren de Aragua. Multi-agency teams have also cleared 49 homeless encampments across the city, according to the White House.