Amtrak restores service from Philly to DC

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Amtrak's Northeast Corridor service resumed between Washington and Philadelphia Tuesday afternoon after being shut down for a time.

Service was suspended on the Acela Express and on the Northeast Regional lines after a freight train knocked down overhead wires on the tracks in Aberdeen, Maryland.

The company said in a service alert that single-track operations through Aberdeen were underway after repairs were made.

Amtrak says passengers should be prepared for delays as trains operate at reduced speeds.

Amtrak spokeswoman Kimberly Woods did not immediately know how many passengers were affected but said that the company's Northeast Corridor, which stretches from D.C. to Boston, is the busiest railroad in North America, with more than 2,200 trains operating each day.

Jonathan Schleifer, whose Amtrak train from D.C. home to New York was canceled Tuesday, said he didn't know about the problem until he got to Washington's Union Station.

"I've gotten so accustomed to Amtrak being so remarkably reliable that I don't even check online to see if the trains are running," Schleifer said. "I took it for granted today and was unpleasantly surprised when I got there."

Paulette Austrich, a Maryland Area Regional Commuter spokeswoman, said the downed lines canceled service Tuesday at its Perryville and Aberdeen stations.

Austrich said those stations service a combined 400 people who park there, and that those commuters drove to nearby stations to catch their trains.