Happening Now
Rail Passengers DC Office Operating Remotely
March 15, 2020
Staff Will Work Remotely, Following Health Professionals' Recommendations
D.C. Office Temporarily Closed, Staff To Telework
Rail Passengers Association President & CEO Jim Mathews decided Sunday to close -- temporarily -- the Association's D.C. headquarters office to staff, office volunteers and visitors as a temporary measure.
In response to the coronavirus outbreak and its rapid spread, health departments in the D.C. area are urging those who can telework to do so, and the Rail Passengers team will do its part to reduce strain on services and limit interpersonal contact.
Although the office at 1200 G St. NW, Suite 240, will be closed, the team will continue our work via cloud computing, remote tools and audio and video conferencing. Office phone calls will be redirected to staff members' personal phones during business hours only.
The restriction on staff and visitors to the office is only temporary, and we will reopen our work site as soon as is practical.
"This step was not taken lightly," said Mathews. "Mass gatherings are now prohibited in the District and in Virginia, and health professionals are recommending that people who have the ability to telework do so. Our team has been operating on 'the cloud' since 2015, and recently was able to upgrade online video- and audio-conferencing tools at no additional charge. Because the team has the ability to be productive remotely, safety and prudence dictate that we follow sound epidemiological practice and keep the staff and volunteers at home."
"The National Association of Railroad Passengers has done yeoman work over the years and in fact if it weren’t for NARP, I'd be surprised if Amtrak were still in possession of as a large a network as they have. So they've done good work, they're very good on the factual case."
Robert Gallamore, Director of Transportation Center at Northwestern University and former Federal Railroad Administration official, Director of Transportation Center at Northwestern University
November 17, 2005, on The Leonard Lopate Show (with guest host Chris Bannon), WNYC New York.
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