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Yesterday, Virginia Railway Express (VRE) Chief Executive Officer Dale Zehner denied Amtrak's allegations that Keolis Rail Services will not be ready to begin operating its commuter-rail service on June 28.

“Keolis has been nothing but hard working and professional. We have no reason to believe that they will not be ready to assume VRE service on June 28,” Zehner said in a prepared statement.

In a statement issued May 20, Amtrak officials said that VRE asked them to continue operating its service for several weeks beyond the contract termination date because Keolis would not be ready. They added that if Keolis wasn't ready to take over June 28, then VRE should re-bid the contract.

However, Amtrak has delayed the transition process and VRE sees no reason to end its contractual relationship with Keolis, said Zehner.

“It now seems clear that the issue is less about VRE service and more about Amtrak’s resistance to Keolis entering a market in which Amtrak has never had competition,” he said.