Gee, just think... If we used the $150 billion "stimulus" instead for a real and long term stimulus, we could afford to do this....

 

http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,6637.msg66295.html#msg66295

 

and this.....

 

http://www.cahighspeedrail.ca.gov/

 

...with another $50 billion left over for developing these 110 mph passenger rail/freight rail capacity enhancement projects:

 

> the Midwest Regional Rail Initiative (Chicago to St. Louis, Milwaukee/Minneapolis, Cincinnati via Indianapolis, and Detroit via Kalamazoo), plus

> the Southeast Corridor from Washington D.C. to Atlanta (via Charlotte), plus

> the Florida Triangle Corridors to Tampa, Miami, Jacksonville and centered on Orlando, plus

> the Cascadia Corridor between Eugene, Portland, Seattle and Vancouver, plus

> the Texas Triangle of San Antonio, Austin, Houston and Dallas/Ft. Worth, and....

 

Still have some billions of dollars left over.

 

Gotta love this country's priorities....

^

 

What our politicians are doing is called pandering and that's what they will do until the Day Of Reckoning comes and they are forced to make difficult and truly meaningful decisions. Until then, this is what we will see.

 

They know there are problems, but are too timid to do what's right.

I remember an exchange between Sen. McCain, who wanted to kill Amtrak and Sen. Joe Biden, who hails from Delaware and has a LOT of train service. Biden said something like "He needs to realize there are those of us who want and need train service. Maybe he should think about that the next time he (McCain) wants a water project."

Amtrak FY09 budget recommendation mirrors FY08 proposal

www.railwayage.com

 

The Bush administration's $3.1 trillion fiscal 2009 budget proposal includes $900 million for Amtrak, the same amount it proposed for fiscal year 2008. The proposal outlines $300 million for operations, $500 million for capital expenses, including upgrades to the Northeast Corridor, and $100 million for grants to states to increase service between heavily traveled cities.

 

 

http://www.railwayage.com/breaking_news.shtm

 

 

National Association of Railroad Passengers: www.narprail.org

 

Statement on Bush Fiscal 2009 Budget Request

Statement of Ross B. Capon

Executive Director

National Association of Railroad Passengers

 

February 4, 2008

 

“While the Administration’s funding recommendations released today for Amtrak are disappointing, they are not surprising, given this Administration’s eight-year lack of vision for a balanced transportation network and most recent hostility to the recommendations of the National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study Commission (NSTPRSC), a federal blue ribbon panel.

 

“Ignoring the recommendations of the NSTPRSC, polls and referenda around the country showing that Americans want passenger trains as a travel choice, and support from Congress, President Bush again has proposed to dismantle the national train system with a shutdown budget of $800 million, a figure $525 million below this year’s budget.

 

“By proposing a 40% cut in Amtrak funds, the Administration would reduce the American people’s travel choices in an era of rising gas prices, concerns about the environment, and hours of lost productivity due to highway and aviation congestion.

 

“The President’s recommendations mean that, once again, Congress will be called on to provide adequate funds for intercity passenger trains.  In recent years, strong bipartisan majorities have rejected proposed Amtrak funding cuts; the Senate passed the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act on a 70-22 vote in October.

 

“With proper leadership from the Administration, we could develop a train system Americans would be proud of.  Last June, NARP introduced a vision for a grid-and-gateway network of interconnected transportation options.  This vision was broadly endorsed by the NSTPRSC, which recommended replacing the current annual appropriations charade with a stable, integrated fund that would enable rational planning. The expanded passenger train network that Americans need is eminently reachable in the next few decades if we begin to put the pieces into place now.

 

“Let’s hope the next president recognizes that integration of passenger trains into a comprehensive national transportation policy will be crucial to preserving and expanding transportation choices for our citizens now and for years to come.”

 

http://www.narprail.org/cms/index.php/news_releases/more/nr08_02/

How many more days until Bush is out of office??!! :whip:

 

I think I'll buy a Bush countdown calendar and start marking the days off...

 

These guys don't miss a trick.

Word has it, that no Bush budget is getting passed. Congress will pass continuing resolutions on any issue that have the remotest disagreement with Bush. However, that basically means that the previous years levels are held in place.

This is another example of Bush's complete disregard for what the people in America want. It's OK to spend billions of dollars getting our young men and women killed but, for some reason, we can't find billions to improve our sub-par education system or to improve or transit systems and infrastructure. I've got another idea! Lets go in debt by another 100 billion and bomb Iran!

^speaking of bombs, I'm expecting any day now for Bush to propose a solution to global warming:  create a nuclear winter by nuking Iran.

 

Back to the thread...  I'm sure Bush cares even less this year because he's a lame duck.  His entire budget is an exercise in ideology.  We're going to be in a heap of trouble if we don't start developing non-automotive forms of transport. 

 

When Argentina, Brazil, and Mexico planning high speed rail lines, and us doing nothing, it's only a sign that we are a superpower on our way down-- down to declining global influence and declining economic relevance in the global economy. 

vote for passenger rail at this link:

 

http://www.washingtonwatch.com/bills/show/110_SN_294.html

 

It's about S 294.  Since we still need a companion bill in the House, it's not outdated.  So far the vote is running 50-50

 

I think I was the 100th voter. It was 54 percent FOR S.294 before I voted, and 55 percent after! I don't often feel like I've made a difference when voting but, dammit, this time I DID!

Press release from All Aboard Ohio. Seems a LOT of groups are piling on!

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 

Contact information:

Andrew Bremer, Executive Director

[email protected]

w: 614-228-6005

c: 614-657-4184

 

February 6, 2008

Columbus, Ohio

 

 

ALL ABOARD OHIO: BUSH BUDGET WILL KILL RAIL SERVICE

 

Modern Trains and Better Transit Service Is A Must

 

 

(Columbus, OH) Proposals such as the Ohio Hub plan, which promises billions in economic development, as well as increased mobility and less dependence on foreign oil, will not be possible unless there is a strong federal partner. The Bush Administration's abdication of what should be a key role of the federal government (promoting interstate commerce) is plainly not in our national interest when the times we live in demand the opposite approach.

 

Calling the current Administration's proposed budget cut for Amtrak a giant step backward, All Aboard Ohio Executive Director Andrew Bremer calls the proposal an "attempt to have ideology trump common sense."

 

Noting the weak national economy and the need to address mobility, energy and environmental issues, Mr. Bremer went on to say, "The Administration has a long and sorry record of trying to subvert the modern development of all forms of transit and passenger rail. This recent budget is just the latest misguided effort."

 

The Administration's $3.1 trillion fiscal 2009 budget proposal includes $900 million for Amtrak, the same amount it proposed for fiscal year 2008. Congress last year granted $1.3 billion to Amtrak funding, citing the Administration's proposal as inadequate.

 

In addition, the Administration's request for FY 2009 would cut $202.1 million for public transportation and proposed to transfer an estimated $3.2 billion dedicated for public transportation to fund highway projects. This proposal has already drawn the ire of the American Public Transit Association (APTA), which promptly issued a statement of its own expressing outrage at the proposed budget.

 

The Bush Administration's actions show an appalling lack of vision for balanced transportation options, by favoring highway and air modes over others, including:

 

> Censoring recommendations of the National Surface Transportation Policy and

  Revenue Study Commission (NSTPRSC), a federal blue ribbon panel. The panel

  called for massive development of light rail and intercity rail passenger service.

 

> Writing federal rules for new transit starts to favor busways, while making light rail

  starts more difficult.

 

> Submitting annual "kill-Amtrak" budgets and actively campaigning for the end of

  passenger rail service.

 

"Given the Administration's backward-looking stance, we are calling on Congress to oppose the President's budget for Amtrak," said Mr. Bremer. "In light of today's energy costs, we should be seeing a massive expansion of rail passenger service, not another attempt to kill it."

 

A report from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory under the U. S. Department of Energy states that passenger rail is more energy efficient than other modes of transportation.[1]  The report uses British Thermal Units, or BTUs, to measure the efficiency of each mode per passenger-mile. One passenger-mile is the equivalent of one passenger traveling one mile.  It shows that, in 2005, domestic airlines on average consumed 20.5% more energy per passenger-mile than Amtrak, while cars consumed 27.2% more than Amtrak.  Looked at the other way round, Amtrak consumes 17.0% and 21.4% less energy per passenger-mile than airlines and cars, respectively.

 

We aren't the only ones questioning the direction we are headed. None other than Robert Crandall, former CEO of American Airlines, had this to say in an address to the National Corridors Initiative sponsored Carmichael Conference on January 28th:

 

"If I could do whatever I wanted to do – I'd prohibit flights to either Boston or Washington from LaGuardia while simultaneously upgrading the rail system – tracks, equipment, power and whatever else is needed – to assure maximum running speed and minimum elapsed time.

 

By doing so, we would better use the railroad asset and would free airplanes, airspace and airport facilities for flights to places that cannot be conveniently reached by rail. Once that was accomplished, I'd move in the same direction in and around Chicago, thus relieving the pressure on O'Hare and on the west coast, thus relieving pressure at Los Angeles and San Francisco.

 

I am mystified as to why most European cities can operate high speed trains from their airports to their city centers while we can't, and equally mystified as to why the Europeans are so much better at linking airports and local rail systems than we are."

 

Mr. Bremer further states: "America is already far behind our counterparts in Europe, Asia and even places like Argentina when it comes to rail passenger service. Proposals such as this ensure we will have no choice but to drive and endure high energy costs and dependence on oil from hostile nations. "The Bush budget is out of line with what Americans want and need: transportation options that include fast, frequent, and fuel-saving passenger trains and mass transit," said Mr. Bremer.

 

                                                      # # #

 

All Aboard Ohio is the only statewide non-profit educational organization entirely dedicated to transportation reform in Ohio, including improved intercity passenger and freight rail, rail transit, bus, bicycle, and pedestrian access. Please visit us at: www.allaboardohio.org

 

 

 

 

Just another thought. There are millions of Americans who for one reason or another, don't have a driver's license. Id doesn't matter what the reason is; the point is that they don't have one. These people need to get from A to B just like everyone else. They need to go to work and visit their kids out of town, go to school, etc. Public transportation is the only option these people have. If we don't support them in their quest to be productive citizens by working and going to school, etc. They will drain our economy, help to increase our Unemployment Rate, fill up our jails so that we have to build more, etc. Public Transportation is vital to this economy and The current administration (Republican) is doing nothing to rebuttal the claims that Republicans are disconnected from the needs of The Poor, The Less Fortunate, The Underdog, The Sick, The Elderly, The People Who Have Made Mistakes and The Urban Youth. Public Transportation, rather it be bus, train or subway, has been a low priority, just like education.

 

 

 

 

 

Keep writing our Democratic congressmen (and Senator) to fight Bush in this pitiful Amtrak budget until his lame-duck ass is outta there come next Jan.  Obama, Clinton, any Dem is better than the Republicans on this score.  If memory serves, wasn't it McCain who was behind the Amtrak initiatives that cut a number of small cities from the lines and, ultimately, break Amtrak up and privatize it -- hastening its doom?  :whip:

McCain is historically anti-Amtrak, anti-passenger rail and anti-transit.  Now, he is the presumptive GOP candidate for President.  The choice is pretty clear if you want to be riding trains in Ohio and elsewhere someday.

Like I said before, if this asshole McCain gets elected into the presidency, I will move to Canada.

Like I said before, if this asshole McCain gets elected into the presidency, I will move to Canada.

 

Theres no way a republican will win this year unless hillary gets the nomination.  then it will motivate the conservatives will rally against her...

Like I said before, if this asshole McCain gets elected into the presidency, I will move to Canada.

We tried last election. No lie. Apparently 2 responsible people with advanced degrees cannot get through the door. Maybe this time we will pretend to be a persecuted transgenered couple (special status! Oh, Canada.)

Like I said before, if this asshole McCain gets elected into the presidency, I will move to Canada.

 

The primary campaign finally provided the motivation I needed to go to the Post Office and get my passport renewed.

The Bush Administration has done this every year to Amtrak. So I'm not surprised they're trying it again. I'm more angered by what the Bushies are proposing to do with transit funding -- use it to bail out the bankrupt federal highway trust fund. Transit is experiencing record ridership nationally, driving has leveled off, gas prices are going through the roof, road construction costs are way up due to rising oil prices, and we still cling to the hope that adding just one more lane to that crowded highway will finally do the trick. Yet each new lane costs way more than the last and produces declining returns on each investment.

 

Wonder why the highway trust fund is circling the financial drain?

 

But, hey, let's try to plug the drain on the backs of those transit users. We can always build more drug rehab centers, jails and morgues instead of actually giving people the physical means to access to jobs and hope.

 

I had high hopes for the Bush Administration after 9-11. They've continually let me down. But this latest proposal is one of the dumbest and most offensive. In fact, it's just downright mean.

I seem to recall that every Republican president beginning with Ronald Reagan has tried to eliminate funding for Amtrak.

Actually almost EVERY president has tried to either cut or kill Amtrak since its inception in 1971, regardless of party affiliation.

 

Jimmy Carter was responsible for the cuts that ended service to Columbus and Dayton in a round of train-offs that included the Floridian (Chicago-Nashville-Miami), The Lone star (Chicago-Kansas City-Oklahoma City-Ft. Worth-Houston), The National Limited (New York-Philadelphia-Pittsburgh-Columbus-Dayton-Indianapolis-St. Louis-Kansas City).

 

Republicans were usually much more blunt:most of them advocated the end of Amtrak unless it made a "profit". Nixon wanted to kill the train after Amtrak was operating only two years. In fact, he almost vetoed the enabling legislation that created Amtrak in the first place, had it not been for a little skullduggery by those who want the bill signed.

 

Reagan tried to kill Amtrak as well. He was responsible for killing the Washington-Cincinnati-Indianapolis-Chicago "Cardinal". He wanted to privatize the Northeast Corridor and junk the rest, but Congress came to the rescue and most trains kept running. The Cardinal came back a couple of years later as the tri-weekly train we have today.

 

The only exception to this was Bill Clinton, whose policy toward Amtrak could best be called "benign neglect". He didn't try to cut or kill Amtrak, but he didn't do anything to help it, either. Had he done anything positive, that might have been enough to blunt the conservative attacks that resulted in the formation of the Amtrak Reform Council, a group put in place to "reform" Amtrak but was actually bent on killing trains.

 

It's been a sordid history and God help us if McCain is elected!!! :cry:

An excellent story from CBS news on the increase in passenger rail ridership and (ironically) how we have grossly underinvested in our passenger rail systems.

 

http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/i_video/main500251.shtml?id=3814003n

Feb. 16, 2008, 6:48PM

Amtrak's defenders cite energy efficiency

Administration wants to cut funds to U.S. rail system by 40 percent

 

 

By JUDY HOLLAND

Copyright 2008 Hearst News Service

 

WASHINGTON — Supporters of federal funding for Amtrak have a new argument: The threat of global warming will be eased if more people ride the train.

 

Amtrak fans point to growing train ridership, which has increased for five years and topped 25.8 million riders last year on the 22,000-mile route system that goes to more than 500 destinations in 46 states.

 

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nation/5546780.html

Watching President Bush ask Congress to slash or eliminate federal funding for Amtrak has become an annual Washington rite that sends railroad aficionados scrambling to lobby Congress to preserve federal aid.   :whip:

 

Here we go again.  So it's only the "aficionados" and choo-choo 'buff' who fight to persuade congress Bush's atrocity cuts are a bad idea.  Fact is, NE congressmen and senators from both sides of the aisle, from Lautenburg, to Specter, to Biden to Frank, among others, always fight these cuts.  While the John McCains (who Ohio is, of course, poised to help send to the White House) who support Bush's cuts. 

 

I just hope Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid don't roll over and play dead like they've been for every Bush Iraqi initiative... History says the NE Amtrak lobby is too powerful to allow the weak Pelosi/Reid backbone rule the day.

 

... Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., argues that Amtrak should be "reorganized" so that the infrastructure of heavily used lines gets improved, while lightly traveled routes are "terminated."

 

"The problem with Amtrak is it has a few lines that are viable and others that will never be able to pay for themselves," Gregg says ...

 

Senator Gregg isn't alone in his inability to comprehend that the lightly-used routes perform an essential function by feeding passengers into the heavily-used routes, and that they're lightly used because of sparse and unreliable service, and that the service is sparse and unreliable because of imbalance in funding between rail and competing modes, and that cutting off the lightly-used routes can have a severe impact upon the viability of the heavily-used routes. He's also not alone in not expecting the same standards of profitability to determine the viability of highways, navigable waterways and commercial aviation.

 

In the transportation business, service reductions almost always reduce revenues more than they reduce costs; the result is a death spiral, which we've been in for decades in US passenger rail service. It's remarkable that despite the worst efforts of national media, presidents and some elected representatives, Amtrak has survived at all.

 

That it is gaining ridership and public support is amazing. Although I sometimes accuse NARP of taking an appeasement stance in dealing with both Amtrak and government, it's apparent that NARP's efforts have made some contribution to the turnaround.

 

I agree that NARP has spent far too much of its energy over the years playing the "Save Amtrak" card and appearing to be somewhat of an apologist for Amtrak.  But I think that's thankfully changing and they are talking these days more in terms of the need for passenger rail development in the broad sense of the word.

 

Some of the credit for Amtrak's record-setting ridership also should go to the current and immediate past CEO's; David Gunn and Alex Kummant.  Both were hired by the Bush Administration and both have done what should have been done years ago.... run it like a railroad and make it run well, often in defiance of the very administration that hired them.

 

But the largest reason for the increase in ridership, I believe, is the public who has clearly sent the message they will ride trains (even not so great ones), because they recognize what many of our so-called leaders (such as Senator Gregg) fail to grasp: that the investment in passenger rail reaps benefits well beyond the initial cost and that we badly need to redevelop and expand it to increase critical transportation choices.

Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., argues that Amtrak should be "reorganized" so that the infrastructure of heavily used lines gets improved, while lightly traveled routes are "terminated."

 

Problem is, there is always the most lightly traveled route, even after multiple cuts. How far should you amputate until the patient dies? I argue that Amtrak got in that position on May 1, 1971 (day it was created by cutting half the national rail network). Amtrak is too small to enjoy economies of scale and the ridership/revenue benefits of a true national network. Amtrak isn't too large -- this is proven by the fact its trains cover their above-the-rail costs but fail to cover the costs of fixed facilities (stations, maintenance facilities etc), corporate overhead, marketing, etc. that would be reduced if Amtrak ran more trains at faster speeds and became a viable transportation option that met traveler's needs rather than those of Beltway Bureaucrats.

 

Oh, and by the way, when idiots like Gregg say "lightly traveled trains" it's a euphemism for long-distance trains -- most of which carry more people and do so at better financial performance (travel industry measuring stick is cost per passenger mile, you political knee jerks!) than most short-haul corridors (before state financial support is counted).

Amtrak to beef up security

From Jeanne Meserve

CNN

 

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Amtrak passengers will be subjected to random screening of their carry-on bags as part of a new security initiative that will include armed officers and bomb-sniffing dogs patrolling platforms and trains, an Amtrak spokeswoman said Monday.

 

Find this article at:

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/02/18/amtrak.security/index.html 

 

Probably they got their shorts in a bunch when they caught some old guy on the platform at Union Station in Chicago, taking pictures of one of the Hiawatha trains, and one worry led to another ...

 

Most likely, the increased security will spur increased vigilance against people who like to take photos of trains.

Rail Passengers Group Slams Bush's Amtrak Cuts

Statement of Ross B. Capon

Executive Director

National Association of Railroad Passengers

On President Bush's Fiscal 2009 Budget Request

 

"While the Administration's funding recommendations .... for Amtrak are disappointing, they are not surprising, given this Administration's eight-year lack of vision for a balanced transportation network and most recent hostility to the recommendations of the National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study Commission (NSTPRSC), a federal blue ribbon panel.

 

"Ignoring the recommendations of the NSTPRSC, polls and referenda around the country showing that Americans want passenger trains as a travel choice, and support from Congress, President Bush again has proposed to dismantle the national train system with a figure $525 million below this year's budget. "By proposing a 34% cut in Amtrak funds, the Administration would reduce the American people's travel choices in an era of rising gas prices, concerns about the environment, and hours of lost productivity due to highway and aviation congestion.

 

"The President's recommendations mean that, once again, Congress will be called on to provide adequate funds for intercity passenger trains. In recent years, strong bipartisan majorities have rejected proposed Amtrak funding cuts; the Senate passed the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act on a 70-22 vote in October.

 

"With proper leadership from the Administration, we could develop a train system Americans would be proud of. Last June, NARP introduced a vision for a grid-and-gateway network of interconnected transportation options. This vision was broadly endorsed by the NSTPRSC, which recommended replacing the current annual appropriations charade with a stable, integrated fund that would enable rational planning. The expanded passenger train network that Americans need is eminently reachable in the next few decades if we begin to put the pieces into place now.

 

"Let's hope the next president recognizes that integration of passenger trains into a comprehensive national transportation policy will be crucial to preserving and expanding transportation choices for our citizens now and for years to come."

 

About NARP

 

NARP is the largest citizen-based organization advocating for train and rail transit passengers. We have worked since 1967 to expand the quality and quantity of passenger rail in the U.S. Our mission is to work towards a modern, customer-focused national passenger train network that provides a travel choice Americans want. Our work is supported by over 23,000 individual members. www.narprail.org.

From the NARP Hotline:

 

Amtrak submitted its 2009 federal grant and legislative request to Congress.  

 

The railroad is asking for a total of $1.671 billion, which includes $525 million for operations, $801 million for capital, and $345 million for debt service. 

 

The request shows a table which also has a “below-the-line” $114 million for the 60% of back pay the Presidential Emergency Board recommended be paid in Fiscal 2009.  But the text of the request said the $114 million “is not included in this FY 2009 request, nor do we believe it will be covered by increased net revenues. 

 

While Amtrak does not have the means to pay the additional 60%, the PEB made clear its belief that the decision to fund this amount lies with Congress.”

 

The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development will hold a hearing on Amtrak Fiscal 2009 funding this Tuesday, March 26.

 

 

Link to the Amtrak request in detail:

http://www.amtrak.com/pdf/FY09GrantLegislativeRequest.pdf

Found this on another blog:

 

"Earlier today, I saw an Associated Press story entitled, "$1.2

billion stealth bomber crashes, burns." I took one look at that

headline and thought, "$1.2 billion, that's almost what they spend

every year on Amtrak!" I did a little checking and found out that

Amtrak's annual budget for 2006 was $1.3 billion. I thought how come

they spend $1.2 billion on one bomber but they claim they can't

spend $1.3 billion to provide the nation with passenger service?"

 

The cost of five of them would build the entire Ohio Hub system.

The cost of five of them would build the entire Ohio Hub system.

 

Too many in our govt believe the (highly inflationary) cost of war is well worth it, but the cost of linking our cities with a worthwhile rail transportation plan as Ohio Hub is wasteful and, well, some kind of socialism... I'm counting the days until Idiot Bush & the Troglodytes are outta there.  But let's make sure we keep McCain out, or it'll be more of the same.

 

We are really talking peanuts in the bigger scheme of things and yet here are the Bushies trying to cut Amtrak and spend transit money on roads. Idiots. :whip:

the cost of linking our cities with a worthwhile rail transportation plan as Ohio Hub is wasteful and, well, some kind of socialism... I'm counting the days until Idiot Bush

 

Did you ever notice that it seems like Republicans love public funding for things they want (roads, funding for suburbs, etc.) but then they cry Socialism whenever that public funding might go to something they won't use?

the cost of linking our cities with a worthwhile rail transportation plan as Ohio Hub is wasteful and, well, some kind of socialism... I'm counting the days until Idiot Bush

 

Did you ever notice that it seems like Republicans love public funding for things they want (roads, funding for suburbs, etc.) but then they cry Socialism whenever that public funding might go to something they won't use?

 

They don't view Amtrak as transportation infrastructure.  They view it in the same light as the Tennessee Valley Authority...a government "business" that should be weened off of government funding.

I was thinking about a much wider spectrum of government affairs than Amtrak when I made my comment.

NARP Hotline News

 

The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies held its annual Amtrak hearing on February 26.   The witnesses were Federal Railroad Administrator Joseph Boardman and Amtrak President Alex Kummant.

 

Chairman John Olver (D-MA) cited record Amtrak ridership, the pay raises recommended by the Bush-appointed Presidential Emergency Board, and recommendations for major increases in passenger train investment from the National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study Commission.  He said that these should have influenced development of the Bush 2009 budget, “but instead we get a carbon copy of last year’s.  It will be extremely difficult to more than double the Bush Administration request to get what Amtrak believes it needs from the federal government.  Unfortunately, President Bush has left us other holes to fill regarding airports, infrastructure, highways and transit and housing.”

 

Ranking Member Joe Knollenberg (R-MI) said he still does not see a clear pathway forward.  Amtrak and FRA “seem to exist in two different worlds. He fears that the Administration is using its “mandate for change” (and Amtrak’s failure to change) as a way of meeting its budget targets, while Amtrak is “not taking seriously the need to restructure itself, streamline its workforce and align its services with public need.  In the end, we are forced to short other worthy programs [in order to give Amtrak more funds that the Administration seeks].”

 

Olver pressed Boardman on what would happen if Congress actually approved just what Bush requested, noting that Boardman is both head of FRA and a member of the Amtrak board.  Boardman talked about the different hats he wears—representing the secretary on the board, rail safety chief, passenger rail believer. He said states need a more important role. 

 

Olver: “The states have got to put a lot more money into passenger rail.” Boardman noted that his review of commuter rail operators in the Northeast Corridor showed that they are paying their share.  But he also said “we have a very uneven level of support among states, especially in my former state of New York” (referring to the fact that the ‘legacy’ Empire Corridor is 100% Amtrak funded).  Commenting on Olver’s earlier statement that the DOT Inspector General last year estimated Amtrak has a $5 billion capital backlog, Boardman said “there is no consensus on what the NEC backlog is—and work must proceed at a rate that lets the railroad continue to run.”

 

Asked by Knollenberg if “cost-benefit analysis” alone was enough to show where passenger rail should exist, Boardman said, “I don’t believe cost-benefit analysis is adequate to tell us what we need to do to maintain mobility and connectivity.  We must look at strategic purpose and the need to connect.  One of Amtrak’s strongest leverage points is their national network and connections with all commuter trains and buses.  We should have a single method of payment” for all the forms of public transportation.

 

Knollenberg said that Amtrak’s ridership dropped in 15% in 1991 during a relatively small economic downturn.  “What if that happens again?” Kummant said Amtrak, in drawing up its budget request, elected to take “a conservative revenue number and to manage costs very hard.” He said the only other alternatives would have been either to ask for a much bigger operating grant to accommodate a severe decline in passenger revenues or, alternatively, to propose dramatic cuts, and neither of those alternatives seemed appropriate.  Then Knollenberg quipped, “Sometimes I think if you had less ridership your losses would be lower.” Kummant: “Not on the Northeast Corridor.” Knollenberg:  “Yes, I know there are some niches like that.”

 

Pressed by Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA), Boardman said the administration would not request the additional money needed to provide workers the back pay recommended by the Presidential Emergency Board.

 

Olver (now in his ninth two-year House term) commented on major passenger train progress abroad during those years, and contrasted it with the relative lack of progress in the US.  What do we do?  Boardman suggested a grade-separated, electrified railroad from Maine to Florida.  “We need a way to partner with private companies.  Maybe a 100-year lease.  That’s our job (at FRA) not Amtrak’s.  Amtrak’s job is to run trains.  We need more trains.  People are flying from Atlanta to Charlotte by way of Philadelphia.  That makes absolutely no sense; that’s part of the air congestion problem.  Those people should be on trains…I think we have an obligation to do electrification where it makes the most sense.”

 

Similarly, Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-OH) commented on the horrendous on-time performance of passenger trains in Toledo:  “The current system absolutely is not working.” She asked, “How can we treat passenger rail more robustly?…I always hear Detroit-Chicago, what about Pittsburgh-Cleveland-Toledo-Chicago.” She talked about involving the governors.

 

Earlier, Kummant said 100 mph service could win many more riders.  He said that an investment of perhaps under $100 million would permit 110 mph speeds on the Chicago-St. Louis line.  “If we got a European train as a demonstration it would sell out.” He also mentioned Chicago-Detroit for “less than $1 billion,” including reopening of the separate line in northwest Indiana, and Los Angeles-Las Vegas.

 

http://www.narprail.org/cms/index.php/hotline/more/hotline_542/

http://www.sacbee.com/110/story/754778.html

The Sacramento Bee

 

Editorial: Low ridership on trains? Can these guys count?

Flawed audit by governor's finance office could have big consequences for rail riders

Monday, March 3, 2008

 

Intercity passenger trains are the transportation success story of the decade in California. But you wouldn't know it if you read the seriously flawed audit just released by the governor's Finance Department.

 

 

Auditors are by nature and definition cynical and remorseless. Field auditors are at the bottom of the pecking order, fresh out of school, regarding their peers as rivals and monitoring each other as cynically as they investigate their targets. They prove their competence and diligence by finding things that are wrong, and their career advancement depends upon finding fault. Based on that reward system, their interpretation of their job isn't to determine facts; it's to send somebody to the gallows.

NATIONAL TRAIN DAY:

from www.railpace.com

 

To raise awareness of the vital role rail plays in our nation's transportation system, Amtrak announced today that it will celebrate its first annual National Train Day during six weeks of celebrations culminating on Saturday, May 10, 2008.

 

http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=Amtrak/am2Copy/News_Release_Page&c=am2Copy&cid=1178294117428&ssid=180

What if you had to commute 222 miles each way to/from Los Angeles almost every day for two years? Would you have missed it? This guy did...so much so that it inspired song and lovely photography (all shot from his commuter vehicle -- an Amtrak train)....

 

On One Key Route, Amtrak is Up, Airlines Down

 

 

 

http://blog.wired.com/cars/2008/03/would-people-av.html

On One Key Route, Amtrak is Up, Airlines Down

 

 

 

http://blog.wired.com/cars/2008/03/would-people-av.html

 

Thats why the arilines have put in tons of negotians with the airports on the NYC-BOS/DCA shuttles.  Those are two of the routes where they try hard not to bump out of a slot to make sure you land on time.  For me it's still easier to take a plane to DC than the train.

 

I agree you can work on the Acela.  Also, on many trains there is usually an empty seat next to you.

Amtrak's Acela gains Boston-New York market share

railwayage.com

 

Amtrak Acela service, long considered a serious contender for market share between New York and Washington, D.C., is flexing its muscle on the northern end of the Northeast Corridor, as well. Acela's market share for Boston-New York service has increased from 36% in 2006 to 41% in 2007, Amtrak says.

 

Amtrak operates nine daily Acela round trips on the NEC between New York and Boston.

 

http://www.railwayage.com/breaking_news.shtml

^Imagine what that market share would be with true high speed rail.  The 3.5 hour travel time for that journey really isn't so impressive.

It's better than the 5-hour run time it used to be.

Harrisburg-New York air service ending, attibuted in part to Amtrak

www.railwayage.com

 

Nonstop air service between Harrisburg, Pa., and New York City will cease April 6, an apparent victim of fuel prices, airport congestion, and Amtrak.

 

Colgan Air, a subsidiary of Pinnacle Airlines Corp., began the short-distance service last September. Colgan has not commented on its decision to end service.

 

read more at:

 

http://www.railwayage.com/breaking_news.shtml

Awesome.