Biden bypassing Amtrak for trip to inauguration

President-elect Joe Biden will no longer be taking an Amtrak trip from Wilmington, Del., to Washington, D.C., for the inauguration next week due to security concerns, according to multiple reports.

Two officials familiar with the planning told CNN that some of the concerns were based on Biden’s arrival at Union Station, just blocks away from the Capitol.

The president-elect previously told his team to keep moving forward with initial plans to ride on Amtrak despite last Wednesday’s deadly riot at the Capitol or complications caused by the pandemic, according to the news outlet.

The Associated Press confirmed the reported change, citing a person briefed on the decision. The news service noted that Amtrak was a preference for Biden during his 36 years in the Senate and he even used Amtrak for a train tour through Ohio and Pennsylvania during his presidential campaign.

Biden’s transition didn’t immediately return a request for comment from The Hill.

The decision comes amid heightened security in Washington next week out of concerns that more violence could emerge around Biden’s inauguration following last week’s storming of the Capitol that left five dead and led to dozens of arrests.

More than 20,000 armed National Guardsmen are now expected to be in D.C. for the inauguration, and Secret Service has begun implementing special security measures for the event.

Biden’s transition team issued a statement on Wednesday saying he was briefed by the FBI and Secret Service about possible threats on Jan. 20 but did not provide specifics on the content of the briefing.