Mar 07, 2008: Hotline #543

The Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies held a hearing on the White House’s proposed Fiscal 2009 transportation budget on March 6, with Transportation Secretary Mary Peters as the sole witness.

Subcommittee Chair Patty Murray (D-WA) said in her opening remarks, “The Administration’s deepest cuts would be to investments in highways and airports – along with his usual request to slash Amtrak and throw the railroad into bankruptcy.  These cuts would be devastating, and his proposal is unacceptable.”  Secretary Peters’ written testimony did not address the Amtrak issue.

Sen. Kit Bond (R-MO) called the Administration’s request a “dismal budget picture for all modes of transportation.”  On the proposal to “borrow” $3.2 billion from the Transit Trust Fund to fill a gap in the soon-to-be-insolvent Highway Trust Fund, he likened it to “taking a bandage off of a bleeding wound to put on another bleeding wound.”

Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) decried the proposed $800 million for Amtrak.  “Once again, President Bush is trying to shut down Amtrak despite strong ridership numbers.  At a time of record gas prices, airline congestion, and congestion on our highways, the President is trying to take away an environmentally friendly option.”

An exchange between Lautenberg and Peters went as follows:

Lautenberg:  “Amtrak said it needs two times the amount President Bush is proposing to operate efficiently.  However, the president continues to reduce his budget request.  Does the president understand the railroad’s needs as he makes these ridiculous budget requests?”

Peters:  “Yes.  It is confusing how ridership grows, yet request for more subsidies continue to grow.  There has to be some economy of scale.”

Lautenberg:  “Your logic is flawed. They need more money to handle the ridership increase because the entire rail system is antiquated and over worked.  Your logic says that you are asking more of them while giving them less to work with.  Are you satisfied with the system?”

Peters:  “We think the federal government should invest in capital, while Amtrak should reduce their need for subsidies.”

Lautenberg:  “What commuter lines make money?  Subsidies for Amtrak are steadily declining.  What we are doing today to our passenger rail system is hurting our society, and setting a trap for ourselves for the future.”

Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA) complained of a cavalier attitude from USDOT towards his office.  “I personally sent the DOT a list of concerns, and no one has bothered to respond.”  He also noted, “The application for Maglev in Pennsylvania has been sitting on someone’s desk for over a year without a response.”

The House Transportation Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials held a hearing to receive testimony regarding the role of investment in the rail industry on March 5.  The hearing was spurred by concerns of an attempted takeover of CSX by the Children’s Investment Fund (TCI), a hedge fund, and the recent acquisition of RailAmerica by Fortress Capital.  Witnesses included Federal Railroad Administrator Joseph Boardman, CSX President and CEO Michael Ward, TCI Partner Shehal Amin, RailAmerica CEO John E. Giles, and Harvard Business School Assistant Professor Robin Greenwood.  All three members of the Surface Transportation Board (Chairman Charles D. “Chip” Nottingham, Vice Chairman Francis P. Mulvey, and W. Douglas Buttrey) also testified.

Complete statements and a video of the hearing are available on the hearing page.

In a statement before the hearing, Subcommittee Chair Corrine Brown (D-FL) said, “The nation’s freight railroads are of critical importance to keeping America’s economy moving.  The vital role played by the rail industry could be crippled if unknown foreign ownership or short-sighted investors took control of any freight rail company.  Foreign-owned hedge funds are profit driven, not accountable to anyone but their company’s investors, and probably do not have an American railroad company’s long term best interests in mind.  In this case, TCI has indicated it intends to cut capital expenditures for CSX and impose large rate increases.  If these reports are accurate, it could slow capacity growth and adversely affect the rail industry, as well as the U.S. economy as a whole.”

House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman James L. Oberstar (D-MN) noted, “23 years ago, [investor] Carl Icahn appeared before this committee in this very room [regarding his proposed takeover of Trans World Airlines].  He told Committee Chairman [Norman] Mineta and the Committee what he would do [at the helm]... Mr. Icahn failed to abide by the assurances, and sold off $1.4 billion in assets… including the $400 million St. Louis to London route, which American purchased and made their money back by the end of the year.  What did he do with that [$1.4 billion], reinvest it in TWA?  No, he took the cash and reinvested it in other assets… That’s the lesson that sticks in my mind.”

The Government Accountability Office issued a report yesterday roundly criticizing federal surface transportation policy.  In the abstract of ”Surface Transportation: Restructured Federal Approach Needed for More Focused, Performance-Based, and Sustainable Programs,” the GAO asserts that, “Surface transportation programs need to be reexamined in the context of the nation’s current unsustainable fiscal path. Surface transportation programs are particularly ready for review as the Highway Trust Fund faces a fiscal imbalance at a time when both congestion and travel demand are growing.”

Ohio has requested Amtrak undertake a study to analyze the costs and details of initiating passenger train service in the “3-C” Corridor (Cleveland-Cincinnati via Columbus and Dayton).  According to an Amtrak news release, Gov. Ted Strickland (D) “asked that the analysis be done in two parts: Cleveland to Columbus and Columbus to Cincinnati (via Springfield and Dayton). The Governor called the 3-C the “backbone of the Ohio Hub, the state’s long-term vision for passenger rail in Ohio.””  All Aboard Ohio President Bill Hutchison was also quoted as lauding the governor for “taking this first step and showing leadership in recognizing the potential of rail development in Ohio. Many other states have already seen remarkable benefits from the implementation of passenger rail services with Amtrak from Maine all the way to California.”

Amtrak announced this week events for National Train Day that will occur on Saturday, May 10.  The date marks the anniversary of the laying of the Golden Spike to complete the Transcontinental Railroad at Promontory Point, UT in 1869.  Event details will be forthcoming at NationalTrainDay.com, where interested parties may sign up for updates.

A Cambridge Systematics study commissioned by AAA has found that automobile accidents cost motorists $164.2 billion annually.  The annual cost per person of $1,051 dwarfs the $430 per person ($67.6 billion total) annual cost of road congestion in the United States.  These two hidden costs of driving total $231.8 billion, which is nearly three and a half times greater than direct federal spending on highways.

The City of Seattle has purchased the historic King Street Station from BNSF for the sum of $10, Mayor Greg Nickels (D) announced on Thursday.  Amtrak and Washington DOT have already restored certain elements of the 1906 structure, which was architecturally marred by “modernizations” such as false ceilings and plastic chairs ahead of the 1962 World’s Fair.  But further restoration (including seismic retrofitting) should be completed within the next three years.  $10 million in city funds will match $16.5 million in federal and state monies to fund the improvements.

The historic ATSF station in San Bernardino, CA is open to passengers once again after Amtrak reached an agreement with the city to partially fund a volunteer Station Host volunteer program.  Amtrak removed agents from the station while it was being rehabilitated, and did not return them when the building renovation was completed a few years ago.  Under terms of an agreement with the City of San Bernardino, Amtrak will pay $500 per month for the next 20 years; $400 will go towards building a museum in the lobby, while $100 will go to San Bernardino Associated Governments to coordinate the Station Hosts.  If you are interested in being a Station Host, please contact the San Bernardino Historical and Pioneer Society.

Amtrak Guest Rewards members will soon be able to purchase additional points, thanks to a deal with vendor Points.com that was announced this week.  Amtrak has not yet outlined details of the service.

A Union Pacific train carrying hazardous chemicals derailed in Mecca, CA on Tuesday, shutting down the Sunset route and causing an evacuation of the area.  On Wednesday, Amtrak turned the Sunset Limited in Tucson, providing a bus bridge to and from Los Angeles.  No further disruptions were expected.

Strong storms in Lancaster, PA caused concrete from a bridge to fall onto catenary wires on Amtrak’s Keystone corridor Wednesday morning.  Amtrak and SEPTA service was disrupted for the early part of the morning.

NARP regional meetings continue tomorrow;  Region 1 meets in Boston and Region 2 meets in Schenectady.  Next Saturday, March 15, Region 4 meets in Baltimore, Region 6 meets in Toledo, and Region 10 meets in Omaha.

» back to main hotline page

Mar 14, 2008: Hotline #544

Both houses of Congress passed their Fiscal 2009 budget resolutions this week.  While nonbinding, the resolutions provide a framework as the budget debate moves forward.  The Senate Budget Resolution approved on a 51-44 vote early this morning includes $1.8 billion for Amtrak plus $250 million to match state investments in intercity passenger train programs.  The House resolution, approved Thursday 212-207, normally does not specify funding levels for specific programs.

The Senate confirmed two of President Bush’s three nominations to the Amtrak Board yesterday.  Nancy A. Naples and Thomas C. Carper will each serve terms of five years.  The nomination of Denver Stutler, Jr. was not considered.

House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) held a forum on infrastructure on Wednesday.  She announced at a press conference that she is interested in legislation that would create a national infrastructure bank.  House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank (D-MA) has said that he will draft a proposal to meet the Speaker’s request when Congress reconvenes after recess, which runs from this weekend to the end of the month.

During Congressional recess, members of the House and Senate will be in their home districts.  Be sure to attend any town hall meetings they hold and let them know that increased investment in passenger trains is important to you!  Click here to visit our Action Alert center.

Rail industry stakeholders descended on Capitol Hill on Thursday for Railroad Day 2008 to promote strong roles for freight and passenger trains in our national transportation system.  NARP participated and called on Congress to support a legislative agenda that would promote balanced transportation by increasing investment in rail.

The National Research Council predicts that global climate change will have a “significant impact” on the infrastructure and operations of transportation systems in the US, according to a report released this week by a committee assembled through the Transportation Research Board (TRB) and the Division on Earth and Life Studies (DELS).  According to the press release, “Preparing for projected climate changes will be costly…  The committee noted the need for “a more strategic, risk-based approach to investment decisions that trades off the costs of making the infrastructure more robust against the economic costs of failure.”  In the future, climate changes in some areas may necessitate permanent alterations.  For example, roads, rail lines, and airport runways in low-lying coastal areas may become casualties of sea-level rise, requiring relocations or expensive protective measures, such as sea walls and levees.”  However, impacts of weather events such as extreme heat or flooding could extend beyond coastal areas.

The American Public Transportation Association released a study this week quantifying the energy savings of transit usage, both directly and through more efficient land use.  “Broadening the Connection between Public Transportation and Energy Conservation” notes that, “Communities who choose to invest in public transportation reduce the nation’s carbon emissions by 37 million metric tons annually- equivalent to the electricity used by 4.9 million households.  To achieve a similar reduction in carbon emissions, every household in New York City, Washington, D.C., Atlanta, Denver and Los Angeles combined would have to completely stop using electricity.  This “leverage effect” of public transportation, supporting efficient land use patterns saves 4.2 billion gallons of gasoline – more than three times the amount of gasoline refined from the oil we import from Kuwait.”

The US Public Interest Research Group also released a report this week examining the broader benefits of public investment in rail and transit.  “A Better Way to Go” examines the specific impacts of development of alternate modes of transportation across the country.

Amtrak and ten of its unions ratified their tentative agreements reached in January, Amtrak announced on Monday, after employees voted to accept the respective agreements.

Amtrak has disbanded its Planning and Analysis department.  Amtrak President Alex Kummant announced to employees this week that the former department’s employees have been distributed between four other departments: Finance, Marketing and Product Management, Transportation, and Strategic Partnerships and Business Development.

Canadian National continues its attempts to convince stakeholders that its purchase of the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railroad in Chicago will not negatively impact Amtrak service on the St. Charles Air Line that CN would eventually plan to abandon.  In a letter to Sen. Richard Durbin (D-IL) and Rep. Melissa Bean (D-IL), CN President and CEO E. Hunter Harrison said, “To remove any uncertainty for Amtrak about the maintenance costs for which they would be responsible after CN ceases freight operations on the line, I agreed during our meeting to cap the costs to Amtrak for maintaining this line at the current level, indexed for inflation in future years.”  In a statement, Sen. Durbin urged Harrison to take additional steps:  “First, CN must allow Amtrak’s continued use of the Air Line Route at no additional cost until the Grand Crossing Route is complete to avoid undue taxpayer burden for this service.  Second, CN must commit to funding the Grand Crossing Route construction to ensure the continued success of Amtrak service in and out of Chicago.”

OnTrack, the former commuter train service in Syracuse, NY, has discontinued its last remaining service.  While DMU commuter service, which had started in 1994, was discontinued last year, the Orange Express specials continued to operate to the Carrier Dome for Syracuse University and other events.  Parent company New York, Susquehanna, & Western will sell its OnTrack assets if no other entities come forward with operating assistance.

Sprinter diesel light rail service in Northern San Diego County finally began revenue service on Sunday between Oceanside and Escondido after months of delays and technical issues.

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) announced $394 million in funding for transit projects, using funds raised by Proposition 1B bonds that voters passed in November, 2006.  Much of the funding goes to rail transit projects and to Amtrak station improvements; you may view the complete list of funding awards in the press release.

Northbound Amtrak Silver Star train 92 will depart Miami at 9:50 AM from March 17 to May 8, two hours earlier than normal, to accommodate CSX trackwork between Sanford and Jacksonville.  Scheduled times north of Jacksonville will remain the same to maintain a consistent operating pattern on the CSX, so the train may hold in Jacksonville for up to two hours.  On Mondays through Thursdays, April 8 to May 8, the train will skip Tampa and Lakeland (with motorcoach service provided), causing additional layovers in Jacksonville of up to four hours.

Amtrak Pacific Surfliner service will be cut back on weekends between April 12 and May 4 to accommodate bridge maintenance north of Oceanside and replacements of grade crossings.  A reduced schedule will be operated north of Irvine, with bus service south of Irvine.  On Fridays, trains 595 and 796 will be protected by buses between Los Angeles and San Diego.

A Union Pacific freight train derailed in Crockett, CA on Sunday, disrupting Amtrak service in the Bay Area.  Coast Starlight train 14 terminated in Oakland and train 11 originated there on Monday, with passengers bussed to and from Sacramento.  Capitol Corridor trains operated with a bus bridge between Richmond and Martinez through most of the day.  San Joaquin trains detoured over Richmond Pacific shortline and BNSF trackage between Richmond and Port Chicago, missing the Richmond and Martinez stops.  California Zephyr train 6 detoured between Emeryville and Sacramento via Altamont Pass, with Martinez and Davis passengers bussed to Sacramento.  Passengers reported that Amtrak and its host railroad partners handled the disruption professionally and that the bus substitutions and detours were executed efficiently given the circumstances.  NARP thanked the railroads for their good work.

Thousands of Amtrak and New Jersey Transit passengers were delayed Monday morning after an Amtrak signal malfunction near Newark.  NJT made additional stops at Secaucus Junction to serve passengers waiting for delayed trains with trains unaffected by the outage.

Amtrak Acela Express train 2154 struck and killed contract track inspector Gary Graves in Providence, RI yesterday.  Two other workers (another contractor and an Amtrak employee) were seriously injured.  Amtrak and MBTA service was suspended for two and a half hours.  The National Transportation Safety Board has begun an investigation.

Amtrak Police officer James Bullard was shot in the foot on Sunday after struggling with a disorderly customer at the McDonald’s in Philadelphia’s 30th Street Station.  Bullard suffered broken bones and was listed in stable condition.  The woman who shot him with his own gun has been charged with attempted murder and other charges.

Ed Leight, a NARP Board Member from 1992 to 2002, died on February 13, 2008; he was 88.

His interest in passenger rail started in the early 1940s when working for the Illinois Central at Chicago Union Station, and he was responsible for bringing the last minute mail bags to the outgoing passenger trains.  This experience although short led to a life long love of trains and resulted in his becoming an involved rail advocate.

Ed brought his conscientiousness, skills, and ever-present humor to his work as a Board Member of ProRail, Wisconsin Association of Railroad Passengers, and NARP Region 7.  He served ProRail as Treasurer and as President for a time.  He wrote a regular column for Badger Rails, and called in live reports from NARP Washington meetings to the Saturday morning ProRail membership meeting in Madison.

Ed and Elaine’s children, Jennifer Schmidt and Steve Leight, wrote a two-page story about their father and handed this out to those at Ed’s Memorial Service on February 19 in Madison, WI.

Here is an excerpt:

“Our lives were filled with Dad’s passion for trains.  He would spend many hours creating his model railroad in the basement of the house (always having time to share and teach about what he was doing) and planning our summer vacations.  All year we would wait in anticipation of going on our two week vacation that Dad had been planning.  In 1976 our first trip out of state led us to Florida and Disney World by train.

“Vacations to follow were to different places throughout the United State by Amtrak and also to Canada on VIA rail; from touring cities, staying in lodges, and traveling to the top of Pike’s Peak in Colorado to dipping our toes in both oceans.  Dad always had his camera in hand and two rolls of film in Mom’s purse so that he could take photo after photo.  His favorite pose for the family was at the dinner table in the dining car on the train.  His knees would shake on purpose as he’d try to get us all into the shot and we can still hear Mom’s harping at him to finally take the picture.”

A memorial plaque for late NARP Board Member Robert “Lord Mayor” Conheim will be dedicated tonight at the Auburn, CA Amtrak station.  Conheim passed away on July 15, 2007.  Funds for the plaque were raised by members of the Capitol Corridor CC Riders group, which Conheim originally organized.  The dedication will happen at 6:30 PM PDT, or upon the arrival of train 536.

An extra benefit of NARP membership: the Special Edition of The International Railway Traveler’s “The IRT Society’s Best-Loved Railway Journeys 2008,” available to all active NARP members free of charge through July 31, 2008.  The 52-page, all-color booklet includes detailed descriptions of the World’s Top 25 Trains, as deemed by the editors, writers and members of the Society (itself 25 years old this year).  NARP members should write or email name, address and NARP membership number to: NARP Offer, The Society of International Railway Travelers, 2010 Edgeland Ave., Suite 100, Louisville, KY 40204; phone (502) 454-0277; email: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address); web site: www.irtsociety.com.

NARP regional meetings continue tomorrow;  Region 4 meets in Baltimore, Region 6 meets in Toledo, and Region 10 meets in Omaha.  On Saturday, March 29, Region 7 meets in Milwaukee.

» back to main hotline page

Mar 21, 2008: Hotline #545

Congress is in recess until the end of the month, and members of the House and Senate are in their home districts.  Be sure to attend any town hall meetings they hold and let them know that increased investment in passenger trains is important to you!  Click here to visit our Action Alert center.

Airlines are suffering from continuing oil prices above $100 and even $110 a barrel, as documented in a March 20 Wall Street Journal front page story.  The day before, AP reported that Delta “said Tuesday that it would offer voluntary severance payouts to roughly 30,000 employees — more than half its work force — and cut domestic capacity by an extra 5% this year as part of a plan to deal with soaring fuel prices.  A rival, United Airlines, said it would ground as many as 20 airplanes, or 4 percent of its fleet, in the face of soaring oil prices.”  On March 6, ATA Airlines said it would discontinue service at Chicago Midway Airport due to “the high cost of fuel…We will redeploy our ATA aircraft in profitable charter service.”  ATA will continue to fly between Hawaii and the West Coast, but other scheduled service will cease effective April 14 (domestic) or June 7 (international).

Rep. John Mica (R-FL), the Ranking Member on the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee, on March 14 introduced H.R. 5644 which, according to his news release, “seeks to develop high speed rail in the congested corridor between Washington and New York, to be followed by proposals for other high speed corridors around the country.  Mica said, “With up to 75% of the nation’s aviation delays attributable to New York airspace congestion, a viable high speed corridor in the Northeast would also free up critical airspace and reduce aviation congestion nationwide.”  The release cites the average speed of Acela—83 mph New York to Washington—while noting that “French and Japanese trains hit [top] speeds of 200 mph and more.”

Under H.R. 5644:

• DOT would solicit proposals for development of a Washington-New York high speed rail link;
• “Proposals will include engineering, financing, and development plans for the DC/NYC corridor” and will require DC-NYC “express service of no more than 2 hours;”
• “DOT will convene a Commission of state, local, federal, rail and rail labor stakeholders to evaluate the proposals and report its recommendations to Congress;
• “Congress will evaluate the Commission’s report and take the necessary action to commence work on the corridor;
• “The DC/NYC link will serve as a pilot for similar projects across the United States, and the DOT Secretary may request proposals for other corridors after selection of the Northeast Corridor proposal;
• “Guarantees labor protections;” and
• “Requires a study to examine how to achieve maximum economic utilization of the Northeast Corridor.”

The 23 co-sponsors include Bill Shuster (R-PA), ranking member of the Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials; Don Young (R-AK), past chairman of the full committee; and two Democrats, Jim Costa (CA) and John Salazar (CO).

The bill does not include funding.  At a July 11, 2007, House appropriations hearing, Amtrak President Alex Kummant said an investment of $7 billion would produce 2:20 service, evidently including five stops (implying 2:00 non-stop service) and also would “improve reliability/capacity for all users” of the corridor.

This week Amtrak announced events for National Train Day in New York, Washington, Chicago, and Los Angeles on Saturday, May 10.  NARP will be present at these events to promote an agenda of growth in our passenger train system, and we are working with rail advocates and other stakeholders planning Train Day events in several additional cities across the country.  Watch the NARP web site for more details in the coming weeks, including resources on how to host a Train Day event in your own town.

Kansas is the latest state to ask Amtrak to prepare a study to examine increasing passenger train service in their state.  Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) has commissioned a study costing between $150,000 and $200,000 with Amtrak that would look into linking Kansas City, MO and Oklahoma City via Newton, KS utilizing “a connection between the Southwest Chief and an extended Heartland Flyer at Newton; a further extension of the Heartland Flyer to Kansas City; or another new service.”

New York State DOT has proposed $151 million in passenger rail capital upgrades as part of its five-year capital program for Fiscal Years 2009-10 and 2013-14.  $80 million will go to expand commuter rail capacity on the Long Island Rail Road’s Main Line between Bellerose and Hicksville.  $71 million in improvements have been identified for both Metro-North Rail Road and Amtrak service along the Empire corridor, including a $13 million capacity expansion at Rensselaer station, $13 million for station improvements, a $13 million crossover near Hyde Park, and $32 million to expand Metro-North’s Poughkeepsie Yard and realign the Main Line.

Amtrak will operate a special train to the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, CA next month.  Up to 500 festival and camp site ticketholders may register online to ride the Coachella Express, leaving Los Angeles Union Station on April 24 and returning on April 28.  Tickets are free for (and restricted to) Coachella festival and camp site ticketholders.  The train will offer checked baggage service.  A special temporary platform will be built in Indio (where Amtrak ceased Sunset Limited and Texas Eagle operations in 1998), and shuttle service will be operated to and from the festival site.  Festival organizer Paul Tollet told Billboard Magazine that Amtrak President Alex Kummant “really liked the idea of getting kids talking about trains.”  Tollet is partnering with Amtrak to help the festival reduce its carbon footprint.

The American Public Transportation Association has good statistics on how mass transit relates to energy supply and carbon emissions.  See the March 20 entry on the NARP Blog or, for more detail, go to APTA’s web site.

Teenagers interested in advocating for public transportation are encouraged to apply for the American Public Transportation Association’s Teening Up for a Greener World: A Youth Summit to Advance Public Transportation.  The three-day summit will take place June 22-24 at Catholic University in Washington, DC, and will include seminars, tours, and a day on Capitol Hill.  APTA will underwrite 100% of the travel, program, and living expenses for program participants.  There are 50 spots available for high school juniors and seniors 18 years old and younger.  Applications are due by April 25.

California Student PIRG is sponsoring a High Speed Rail Spring Break next week in order to organize young people to heighten awareness and build support for California’s HSR plans.  A $9 billion ballot initiative to fund initial construction is expected to be on the General Election ballot in November.

Washington, DC Union Station may soon host the city’s intercity bus terminal.  Talks have recently been renewed between Union Station Redevelopment Corporation (USRC), the District of Columbia, and Greyhound Lines.  Congressional leaders have sent a letter endorsing the idea to USRC President David Ball.  House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee Chair James Oberstar (D-MN) and Ranking Member John Mica (R-FL) signed the letter, as did Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Chair of the House Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management.  The letter says, in part, “We believe that it is essential for Washington, D.C. to have an integrated transportation center which includes rail, bus, and transit to enhance passenger travel…  This transfer will enhance Union Station’s role as a true intermodal transportation center and will serve as an outstanding example for the rest of the country…  Relocating Greyhound’s intercity bus terminal to Union Station will enable passengers to move seamlessly from one mode of transportation to another and will help continue the prosperity of Union Station.”  The current intercity bus terminal is outdated and sits three blocks north of Union Station.

A bomb threat caused the evacuation of nearly 300 passengers from southbound Amtrak Silver Meteor train 97 on Saturday night in Emporia, VA.  A 23 year-old Yemeni man reportedly got into an argument with another passenger.  When confronted by the conductor, he declared that he had a bomb in his bag.  Passengers were evacuated and taken to a nearby elementary school while Virginia State Police Bomb Squad swept the train.  Three and a half hours after the train was evacuated, they determined the threat to be a hoax.  The man was detained by the FBI and faces a felony charge of making a threat on a public conveyance.

Northbound Amtrak Springfield Shuttle train 490 suffered a minor derailment on Monday due to a mudslide north of Windsor Locks, CT.  None of the crew members or six passengers were injured, and all were transported to the next and final stop of Springfield, MA by van.  Service between Springfield and New Haven was protected by motorcoaches for the rest of the day.

Major storms in the Midwest this week disrupted Amtrak’s operations of the City of New Orleans and Texas Eagle.  On Tuesday, the City was bus-bridged between Carbondale and Memphis.  Eagle trains bus-bridged between Longview, TX and St. Louis.  On Wednesday and Thursday, service was cancelled entirely between Fort Worth and St. Louis, with no alternate transportation provided.  For today, Amtrak will operate a shorter bus bridge, Little Rock-St. Louis.  As of this writing, Amtrak expects to resume all-rail service with trains departing tomorrow (March 22) from both San Antonio and Chicago.

Amtrak’s westbound Southwest Chief train 3 terminated in Flagstaff, AZ on Sunday following a BNSF freight train derailment near Williams Junction.  Passengers were bussed between Flagstaff and Los Angeles, and eastbound train 4 originated in Flagstaff on Monday.

Amtrak Cascades service was disrupted north of Seattle on Monday following a BNSF freight train derailment due to a tractor-trailer truck fouling a grade crossing.  Service between Seattle, Bellingham, and Vancouver, BC, Canada was protected by motorcoaches for the rest of the day.

NARP regional meetings continue next Saturday, March 29; Region 7 meets in Milwaukee.  The final meeting of the season, Region 12, will take place in Sacramento on April 19.

» back to main hotline page

Mar 28, 2008: Hotline #546

The NARP Grow Trains Campaign and Vision Plan is now the centerpiece of our 2008 Action Alert flyer that you can copy and distribute!  We’re continuing to work to shift the conversation from cutting train service to growing it.  Click here to download and print the flyer.

NARP is pleased to announce events for National Train Day on Saturday, May 10 at Amtrak stations across the country.  More details will be added as they become available.

Missouri’s House of Representatives passed a state budget yesterday that reduces Amtrak operating assistance.  Current annual funding of $7.4 million would be cut to $4.5 million, rather than increased to $8 million as MoDOT has requested. 

MoDOT had joined Amtrak and Union Pacific officials and rail advocates on Monday in seeking $10.6 million in capital improvements (in addition to the operating funds).  If the Missouri Senate upholds the reduced funding, Amtrak would likely cut one of its two round-trips between St. Louis and Kansas City, and prospects for improving service reliability would diminish.

The owners of Madison Square Garden have announced that they will renovate the arena atop New York’s Penn Station (former site of the original Penn Station building).  They had originally expressed interest in relocating across the street as part of the Moynihan Station redevelopment project.  News sources are now categorizing the entire project as being in jeopardy.  Amtrak has asked the Garden owners to resume negotiation with the myriad public and private interests involved in the project.

Lancaster, PA County Commissioners approved $400,000 this week to match federal and state funds for a $12 million renovation of the Lancaster Amtrak station.  Work will begin this fall and should wrap up by 2010.

Vermont’s Agency of Transportation will attempt to revive negotiations with Colorado Railcar to purchase diesel multiple unit trainsets for state-subsidized Amtrak routes.  Talks had fallen through last fall over contract terms.

According to a recent poll by Minnesota 2020, Minnesotans strongly support passenger trains.  The group notes, “Nearly three-quarters of respondents agreed that ‘the state should be exploring more ways to expand and promote regional rail services as a means of affordable and efficient transportation.’ In the [Twin Cities] area, 74% gave that a thumbs-up. But support was nearly as widespread outstate, with 69% in agreement.  These strong findings should lend impetus to efforts to launch not only new rail and bus rapid transit lines in the Twin Cities, but also passenger rail lines from the Twin Cities to Duluth, Rochester, Willmar and Chicago.”

It appears that Amtrak is expecting to restore full-service Coast Starlight service by April 21.  There is a good chance that the Union Pacific’s line over Willamette Pass will be open by then.  In case it is not, Amtrak is studying operation of full-service trains between Los Angeles and Klamath Falls, Oregon, which would eliminate the long, overnight portion of the bus bridge.  Since last month, Amtrak has operated a bus bridge between Portland and Sacramento, connecting with a coach-only Sacramento-Los Angeles train.

Amtrak began $10 million in repairs to the Hell Gate Bridge in Astoria, Queens, NY on Tuesday.  The project had been delayed since 2006 due to contract procurement issues.

Amtrak’s Southwest Chief Thruway connection to/from Denver will once again resume operations out of Raton instead of Albuquerque, effective April 1.  This reduces travel time from over eight hours to about four hours.  The previous passenger-unfriendly routing has been in effect since November.

Amtrak’s Capitol Corridor will operate on a modified schedule this weekend due to Union Pacific trackwork.  Please check the Capitol Corridor web site for more details.

A loaded centerbeam freight car rolled three miles from a lumber yard at Canton Junction, MA striking MBTA Stoughton Line train 917 on Wednesday afternoon on the Northeast Corridor mainline.  Half of the 300-plus passengers and crew were injured, with mostly minor injuries.  Amtrak and MBTA suffered delays of two hours or more.  The Boston Globe reported that the crash “occurred five minutes after an employee at a Stoughton lumber yard called police, warning that the freight car had gained access to the commuter rail tracks and that any approaching train should be stopped.”

Two Long Island Rail Road trains side-swiped at a low speed at Jamaica Station at about 10 AM on Wednesday morning.  FDNY officials said there may have been minor injuries.  Cancellations and minor residual delays carried into the early afternoon.

Numerous Amtrak trains were annulled or delayed south of Washington, DC on Thursday after a CSX freight train derailed just north of Amtrak’s Richmond Staples Mill station.  Regional trains 84, 86, and 94 were cancelled south of Washington, Carolinian trains 79 and 80 were cancelled between Washington and Raleigh, and Palmetto trains 89 and 90 were cancelled entirely; Amtrak did not provide alternative transportation in any of the above cases.  Northbound Silver Meteor train 98 passengers were bussed from Richmond.  The Auto Train incurred severe delays.

Thousands of Amtrak and New Jersey Transit passengers were delayed on Wednesday after Amtrak suffered low-voltage conditions on Northeast Corridor catenary systems south of New York.  Trains were delayed up to two hours.

Boston-New York Amtrak service will cease from Sat., June 14 to Tues., June 17, except for a single schedule via Springfield which includes use of the Lake Shore Ltd. and changing trains at Springfield.  NARP has expressed concern to Amtrak over its near-total abandonment of this key market for four days, with no plans for through cars via Springfield or any kind of bus bridge, such as Boston-Hartford or New Haven-Providence.

NARP regional meetings continue tomorrow with Region 7 in Milwaukee.  The final meeting of the season, Region 12, will take place in Sacramento on April 19.

The April issue of NARP News has been uploaded to the members’ section of our web site.  Click on “Login” above, just below “E-mail Signup” to access the newsletter, or click “Register” if you have not yet signed up for members’ access.  Be sure to include your membership number when registering.

» back to main hotline page