An Amtrak shutdown would be a commuting disaster for the Washington region, causing mass service disruptions as the employees, equipment and facilities on which Virginia Railway Express and MARC depend suddenly vanish, a new federal report shows.

The area’s two commuter rail providers, transporting 40,000 riders daily, rely heavily on Amtrak, particularly for train operation and maintenance, rail line right-of-way into Union Station and storage at the Ivy City Yard, according to the report released Monday by the Government Accountability Office. Most commuter rail along the Northeast corridor, from Fredericksburg, Va., to Boston, would be struck with disruptions or shutdowns if the financially shaky Amtrak were to halt operation, the GAO said.

“Amtrak has been on and off life support for many years,” said Dana Kauffman, a member of the VRE Operations Board and a Fairfax County supervisor. “We’re always looking at, if we were to suddenly lose Amtrak how would we deal with everything from providing conductors to heavy maintenance on our engines.

“We all need a healthy Amtrak.”

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According to the report, prepared for the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, VRE is 100 percent dependent on Amtrak for train operators and 66 percent dependent for equipment maintenance. Half of all MARC train operators are Amtrak employees, as are 83 percent of its maintenance staff. Fifty percent all routes run over Amtrak-owned rail.

“MARC officials told us if MARC could no longer access Washington Union Station, they would run only the trains that operate over CSX Transportation infrastructure to stations outside of Washington, D.C., and passengers would need to transfer to subway or bus lines to complete their trips into Washington, D.C.,” the GAO said.

An Amtrak stoppage requires no stretch of the imagination. The passenger rail provider bleeds money and President Bush has tried to cut its federal funding. If legislators substantially reduce federal aid, the GAO said, an “Amtrak bankruptcy or shutdown could quickly follow.”

Most transit providers have identified short- and long-term options in the event of an abrupt Amtrak stoppage. But in few cases could service disruptions be avoided, according to the report.

mneibauer@dcexaminer.com