Apr 04, 2008: Hotline #547

The Senate Appropriations Transportation subcommittee, chaired by Patty Murray (D-WA), held a hearing to consider surface transportation on Thursday, with one panel covering highways and transit and the other devoted to Amtrak.  The latter included Federal Railroad Administrator Joseph Boardman, Amtrak Chairman Donna McLean and President Alex Kummant, USDOT Assistant Inspector General David Tornquist, and Transportation Communications International Union VP Joel Parker.  Complete audio of the hearing is available online (Real Player format).

Much of the first panel dealt with the shortfall in the Highway Trust Fund, and the Amtrak panel considered at length the question of the $114 million which Amtrak says it needs as a special appropriation in order to pay the FY 2009 (second and final) phase of the back pay which the Presidential Emergency Board recommended the unions get, but which Amtrak has not specifically requested even though saying it needs Congress to appropriate it in order for it to be paid.

Tornquist said that Amtrak could pay the unions out of the anticipated end-of-year cash balance of $268.7 million, but Kummant said it was too early to project such an end-of-year balance.  He also cautioned that, last year, Amtrak came within three weeks of running out of cash “by the time we got our first [federal] grant in February.”

Under the new Amtrak/union agreements, Amtrak (at the discretion of its board) has the right to notify the unions next year that funding is not adequate to provide the second tranche of back pay, due 12 months after the agreements were , and the unions could strike 60 days thereafter.

Tornquist, while saying Amtrak “has benefited from the strong leadership” of McLean and Kummant, said Amtrak’s 2009 budget has no new reforms that produce operating savings. Sen. Kit Bond (R-MO), the subcommittee’s ranking member, zeroed in on this, calling it “a great big black hole” in Amtrak’s 2009 budget request, which contrasted with $61.3 million in savings in FY 2005, $52.8 million in 2006, and $40.3 million in 2007.  Kummant responded that significant reforms are in the works but they will take longer to produce bottom-line results.  This includes Amtrak’s increased work with the states and efforts to increase state payments; reconfiguring mechanical aspects of Amtrak operations; and the development of e-ticketing.  He reminded senators that “the food reforms continue,” but the Inspector General doesn’t count that as a “new” reform.

Bond also highlighted that the Presidential Emergency Board (PEB) supported no work rule reforms, saying he had tried to have a PEB witness and speculated that this was because they did not want to defend their “no work rule change” recommendation.  Parker, however, said “no one could possibly call this a pro-labor Board.” He said the 2.6% a year pay increases, net of employee health contributions, was modest.  Parker also said “for the first time, in a long time, labor peace is possible on Amtrak.”

As on the House side, Boardman was pressed as to how Amtrak could avoid bankruptcy if the Administration’s budget request was adopted, after Tornquist and Amtrak leaders said bankruptcy would be unavoidable (Kummant qualifying his answer, “in the absence of draconian change”). Boardman said the states could pay more, starting with New York, which pays nothing for the legacy Empire Corridor service. He referred also to e-ticketing and mechanical issues earlier cited by Kummant, but Kummant here reminded senators that “we have to spend the money first” before those operating savings could be realized.

Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) reminded everyone of the congestion and energy issues that make trains so important.  He questioned Tornquist about the on-time performance study done at Lautenberg’s request, completed on March 28 and released on April 1 (see next item).  Tornquist said the assumption of 85% on-time performance on non-Northeast Corridor trains is what produced the $136.6 million bottom-line improvement opportunity.  Lateness factors cited by Tornquist were inadequate track capacity, host railroad operating practices, and factors beyond those railroads’ control.

On April 1, the USDOT Office of the Inspector General released the above-referenced report on the fiscal impact of Amtrak’s timekeeping issues.  “Effects of Amtrak’s Poor On–Time Performance” reflects the above testimony by Assistant IG David Tornquist that improving non-Northeast Corridor on-time performance to 85% could reduce Amtrak’s operating loss by 30 percent.  Sen. Lautenberg, who requested the study, said in a press release, “This report puts in real dollars what these delays are costing Amtrak, taxpayers and rail travelers.  Passengers shouldn’t have to miss their meetings or family engagements because a freight train is blocking the tracks.  With high gas prices, widespread traffic congestion and flight delays the norm, we must ensure passenger rail is a reliable option for travelers.”  The release also noted that passenger rail reauthorization bill S.294, the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act (which passed the Senate by a veto-proof margin and awaits House action), contains provisions to improve on-time performance.

NARP Executive Director Ross Capon testified April 1 in New York City regarding the Trans-Hudson Express Tunnel as part of Access to the Region’s Core.  He urged New Jersey Transit to restore the originally planned link between the new Hudson River tunnels and existing New York Pennsylvania Station (NYP).  FTA held the federally-required hearing to review the tunnel project’s Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement (SDEIS).  The so-called “refinements” from last year’s DEIS include elimination of that link, so that the new tunnels would run only to a new 34th Street Station which advocates believe is so deep as to make the long-sought extension to Grand Central Terminal economically prohibitive.

In his testimony, Capon spoke against $7.6 billion to create new tunnels that would add zero redundancy or operational flexibility to New York City’s intercity train services and make prospective cross-NYC regional services like Trenton-Stamford just as vulnerable.  He noted that, even without a temporary or, “heaven forbid,” long-term closure of the existing tunnels, the conflict between growing demand for weekend service and maintenance requirements which must be handled during the weekends cries out for the kind of operational flexibility that would result from linking the new tunnels to NYP.

Therefore, even after spending this $7.6 billion, should the existing tunnels be withdrawn from service, NYP would lose all service to New Jersey—both Amtrak and NJT.  Amtrak, and some NJT trains that now serve Manhattan, would have to terminate at Newark.  Short-term impact: massive diversion of travelers to motor vehicles and airplanes.  Long-term impact: serious threat to New York City’s economic viability.  Result of both short- and long-term impacts: reliance on less energy-efficient modes of transportation.

Yet, at Tuesday’s hearing, environmental organizations applauded the “refinements;” evidently the ability of New York City to function without the two 100-year-old tunnels is less important than avoiding cut-and-cover work through the city’s new Hudson River Park and avoiding the need to cut through a historic Hudson River bulkhead.

The record remains open until April 28 for written testimony, which may be sent to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

Two domestic airlines ceased operations this week amid continuing price competition and crushing fuel costs that especially impacted older aircraft fleets.  Honolulu-based Aloha Airlines, which had flown since 1946, ended passenger service on March 31 (though continues cargo service while it attempts to sell that division), ten days after entering Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for the second time since 2006.  Aloha cited “unfair competition,” a veiled reference to low-cost inter-island carrier go!, a subsidiary of Mesa Airlines.  Aloha flew fuel-inefficient Boeing 737-200s (a model that lacked modern turbofan engines and was first built in 1965) on its inter-island flights.

Indianapolis-based ATA Airlines, which began service in 1973 as Ambassadair, entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on April 2, also for the second time since 2006.  ATA abruptly halted all operations in the early morning of April 3.  ATA cited the non-renewal of a longtime FedEx-facilitated military charter contract, the “dramatic and unprecedented increase in the price of jet fuel in recent months,” and the inability to raise further capital to continue operations.  ATA flew several gas-guzzling Boeing 757-200s, and its charter fleet consisted mainly of elderly Lockheed L-1011 Tristars and McDonnell Douglas DC-10s.

The one-two punch of Aloha and ATA shutting down left thousands of passengers scrambling to find alternate (and often costly) arrangements, as both airlines had provided significant capacity between Hawaii and the Mainland.  The impact was also acute for customers of Southwest Airlines, which had a stake in ATA during the previous bankruptcy (Southwest continued to codeshare with ATA to provide service to cities not served by Southwest, particularly in Hawaii and Mexico).

This week, Bloomington, MN-based charter airline Champion Air – founded in 1995 – also announced that it would cease all operations on May 31.  Champion noted that “the run-up in fuel prices strongly impacted Champion’s fleet of three-engine Boeing 727s and that both the overall economic slowdown and the tight credit markets had a strong, negative impact on the airline’s business prospects and its efforts to attract investors.”

Last month, Billings-based regional airline Big Sky Airlines – founded in 1978 – ceased operations, ending service on March 8 in the wake of record fuel prices and losing a contract to operate as Delta Connection.  Many towns in Montana, North Dakota, and Wyoming are currently without Essential Air Service while a new operator – presumably Cheyenne-based Great Lakes Airlines – is chosen.

Northwest Airlines will mimic cost-cutting moves that Delta and United had announced within the past few weeks.  Northwest, which emerged from Chapter 11 last year, will cut its domestic flight schedule by 5 percent in September, continue to increase international fuel surcharges, and freeze the hiring of new pilots and flight attendants.  Northwest President and CEO Doug Steenland noted that “the price of oil has risen dramatically to all-time highs and there is no reasonable basis to conclude that oil prices will materially decline anytime soon.  Against that backdrop, Northwest is also expected to ground up to 20 planes of varying models.  Northwest is the largest remaining operator of McDonnell Douglas DC-9s, some of the oldest and least fuel-efficient planes in the sky.

The US Environmental Protection Agency was served with a lawsuit on Wednesday from 17 states, the District of Columbia, the cities of New York and Baltimore, and 11 environmental groups for failing to regulate CO2 emissions in the wake of an April, 2007 Supreme Court decision.  The ruling from the High Court held that CO2 emitted from the burning of fossil fuels is a pollutant under the Clean Air Act, within the EPA’s jurisdiction to regulate.  The lawsuit seeks to compel the EPA to act within 60 days.

Transport for London announced that the city’s urban congestion charge will be transformed in October from a $16 daily surcharge for all vehicles driving into the city center to a $50 daily emissions fee on gas-guzzling vehicles driving in.  Fuel-efficient vehicles will not be subject to any fee.  The plan comes after an announcement from London Mayor Ken Livingstone that trucks entering the city center would have to pay a $400 fee to mitigate their emissions.

Meanwhile, the City Council of New York this week approved its draft congestion fee plan for Midtown and Lower Manhattan.  The proposal must be approved by the State Legislature before it can qualify for federal funding.

Union Pacific announced in a message to customers yesterday that it “expect[s] to be able to begin limited operations… during the second week of April” on the landslide-damaged line through Frazier, OR that has hampered Amtrak’s Coast Starlight since January 19.  “Normal service levels should be restored in late spring,” the message continues.  The Eugene Register-Guard reported on Wednesday that nighttime freight service could begin as early as tomorrow.  There would be a limited window for overnight operations (outside of the window that Amtrak normally operates through the area), with cleanup and repair efforts continuing for the majority of hours during the day.

For today and today only, Amtrak is selling Buy One, Get One Free tickets for use on Saturday, May 10 (National Train Day) only.  Use promotion code H768 and see Amtrak’s web site for more details.

Demonstrators marched from Penn Station to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in New York City on Wednesday to protest the practice of US Customs and Border Protection agents boarding Amtrak trains and Greyhound buses within the US (but near the Canadian and Mexican borders) at random to perform citizenship checks.  Amtrak and Greyhound both maintain that they simply comply with law enforcement requests.  NARP has repeatedly urged Amtrak to work with CBP to minimize passenger delays associated with these checks.

Boston-New York Amtrak service will cease from Saturday, June 14 to Tuesday, June 17, except for a single schedule via Springfield which includes use of the Lake Shore Limited and changing trains at Springfield.  Amtrak is using the window to cut in the new Thames River Bridge in Groton, CT and perform a track maintenance blitz.  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.

Amtrak service west of Albany-Rensselaer, NY was disrupted yesterday after a CSX coal train derailed in Palmyra, east of Rochester.  Empire Service west of Rensselaer was cancelled; bus bridges were provided for Lake Shore Limited passengers (between Rensselaer and Buffalo) and Maple Leaf passengers (between Syracuse and Niagara Falls).

NARP’s final regional meeting of the season, Region 12, will take place in Sacramento on April 19.

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Apr 11, 2008: Hotline #548

NARP Executive Director Ross Capon issued an open letter to Governors Jon Corzine (D-NJ) and David Paterson (D-NY) on Wednesday asking them to use their “considerable influence over the relevant agencies to make sure that the needed track connection [linking the proposed new Hudson River tunnels with New York Penn Station] is created, for the benefit of today’s riders and those in the decades to come.”  Capon called it “a matter of extreme urgency.”  He acknowledged that this “might take longer to get done” but noted that “Fifty, or even 20 years from now, no one will care whether the new tunnels opened in 2017 or a few years later.  But they will care about what those tunnels do—and they will care passionately if the existing tunnels are ever shut down.”  NARP also issued a news release.

In a letter made public earlier the same day, NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly this week voiced frustration that New York Penn Station is not protected by basic security measures.  Even though funded, bollards and delta barriers able to stop truck bombs have not been installed, apparently due to continuing disagreements among the four agencies “on which properties the security perimeters will be placed and who will pay for the manned checkpoints.”  The agencies are Madison Square Garden, Vornado Realty Trust, MTA and Amtrak.  Kelly’s letter called Penn Station the “single most critical transit hub in the United States.”  The letter, dated March 25, was intended to be private, according to a spokesman for Kelly.

Capon’s letter (top paragraph) referred to Kelly’s “critical transit hub” comment and commented: “A key security priority for this hub should be to eliminate the vulnerability associated with its dependence on two 100-year-old tunnels.”

Capon testified at a hearing on the tunnel project in New York City on April 1 (see our April 3 hotline).  Witnesses who gave testimony consistent with NARP (beyond those we previously mentioned) at either the March 31 hearing in New Jersey or the New York City hearing (or both) include NARP Directors David Alan, George Haikalis and Al Papp.  Witnesses spoke representing New Jersey Association of Railroad Passengers, Empire State Passengers Association, Lackawanna Coalition, and members of the Regional Rail Working Group.

The record for public comment remains open until April 28 for written testimony, which may be sent to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

Widespread turmoil in the airline industry continued in the past week as demand for Amtrak reservations surged.  Last Friday, April 4, ultra-low-cost carrier Skybus of Columbus, OH declared bankruptcy and ceased operations.  Because it served many secondary airports, Portsmouth, NH once again lacks any commercial airline service.  On Wednesday, low-cost Asian carrier Budget Hong Kong ceased operations.  Today, Denver-based Frontier Airlines filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, but vowed to continue operations.  Late last week, the Hawaii Tourism Authority approved a $5 million emergency subsidy to hire outgoing charter flights for passengers stranded by the shutdowns of Aloha and ATA Airlines.

American Airlines since Tuesday has cancelled nearly 3,100 flights, affecting over 250,000 passengers.  All of American’s MD-80s (one-third of its fleet) have been grounded at some point this week due to potentially faulty wiring uncovered in stepped-up FAA inspections.  FAA audits of airline maintenance practices have intensified in the past week as whistleblowers and the USDOT Inspector General testified to Congressional committees that FAA managers might have allowed airlines to cut corners on maintenance.  Smaller-scale groundings have affected other airlines, and more are likely.

Many passengers stranded at American’s hub at O’Hare have flocked to Amtrak trains out of Chicago Union Station.  Unfortunately, intercity train alternatives at Dallas-Ft. Worth, American’s second largest hub, are limited.  The daily Texas Eagle serves Dallas and Ft. Worth (to/from Chicago and San Antonio, with thrice-weekly connections to/from Los Angeles), while the Heartland Flyer to Oklahoma City begins and ends its daily round-trip at Ft. Worth.  For more coverage, see yesterday’s blog post.

Florida inched closer to approving a budget that would fund the $641 million deal with CSX that Gov. Jeb Bush announced in 2006.  The state would acquire the 61-mile line from DeLand through Orlando to Kissimmee and run commuter trains on it, although CSX would retain substantial rights for use of the line.  Funds would also would upgrade tracks so that more freight could run north via Lakeland instead of Orlando. This has ignited a firestorm in Lakeland.  If the deal goes through, that city’s grade crossings would see more freight trains, partly as the result of a planned CSX hub in Winter Haven.  The Lakeland City Commission’s February 18 resolution said those freight trains “will devastate the Central Florida cities [the line] bisects as CSX responds to the growing business needs of its customers through increased projected freight train operations with more numerous and longer crossing delays…”

Those freight trains could bypass Lakeland, and have a 17-mile shorter run north, with reactivation of a line that Amtrak used until CSX abandoned it in 1992.  The segment from Auburndale to Coleman was part of a fast Amtrak run from Jacksonville to Miami via Waldo and Ocala.  In 1992, the Silver Star took two hits that lengthened its route—closure of this segment forced a reroute via Lakeland over the same tracks that may soon see increased freight service, and closure of the direct route north from Raleigh to Petersburg, VA, forced a reroute via Selma and Rocky Mount, NC, which continues to this day as North Carolina DOT works towards reopening the abandoned line.

In the April 7 edition of The Ledger (Lakeland), Political Editor Bill Rufty wrote that, “as legislators search to find an alternate route for the increased [freight] train traffic…one suggestion has been repeated more than once”—reactivation of the Auburndale-Coleman line.

Meanwhile, although on April 9 the Florida Senate approved a budget with the $641 million in it, The Ledger reported yesterday that “some lawmakers who voted to keep the CSX funding intact Wednesday said they could vote to kill the project under different circumstances…the stiffest fight may be ahead as lawmakers consider CSX’s demand that it be exempt from any legal costs involving passenger trains, even if the company is at fault.”

CSX is fighting the latter battle in Massachusetts as well, where negotiations for state acquisition of the Framingham-Worcester segment apparently have stalled over a similar issue: “the insistence of CSX on no-fault liability despite the fact that the state would own the land and the tracks and the existence of a state law that caps overall liability.”  The quote is from an April 2 letter that the Massachusetts Congressional delegation sent to CSX President and CEO Michael Ward.  In an April 4 reply, Ward said, in part, “The industry standard when sharing tracks with commuter operations, Amtrak or freight rail is for all parties to have adequate insurance and to allocate liability regardless of fault, with freight railroads covering costs of freight equipment, employees, and lading; and the passenger railroads covering costs of their equipment, employees and passengers.  These agreements apply regardless of which entity owns the track and are the standard used by Amtrak, transit agencies and the freight railroads.  With ownership comes control of maintenance and dispatch, but no change in the allocation of liability.”

Some observers believe that Massachusetts negotiations are “stalled” because CSX thinks it can close the deal on its own terms in Florida quicker, and thus make it harder for Massachusetts to resist similar terms.

Amtrak will restore Coast Starlight service to a greater extent next week.  Effective with the northbound departure of train 14 from Los Angeles on Tuesday, April 15, and the southbound departure of train 11 from Seattle on Wednesday, April 16, Amtrak will operate the trains full-service between Los Angeles and Klamath Falls, OR.  A bus bridge will operate between Klamath Falls and Eugene (stopping in Chemult).  A connecting coach-and-café train will operate between Eugene and Seattle.  All of the above will carry local passengers in both directions.  Amtrak has blocked until Monday, April 14 the sale of sleeper space for trains operating through May 6 to allow previously-booked passengers to be reaccommodated.

Thruways between Klamath Falls-Medford and Thruways between Chemult-Bend-Redmond will be restored.  The Klamath Falls-Pasco Thruway connection to the eastbound Empire Builder will also be restored. (The westbound connection is made at Portland.)

The Pacific Parlour cars (for sleeper passengers) are undergoing renovation for the relaunch of the Coast Starlight and are not scheduled to operate.  Amtrak has not announced a decision on when to relaunch the Coast Starlight with upgraded amenities, but signage in certain stations advertise a “mid-2008” relaunch (previous literature had advertised May 10 as the relaunch date).

Union Pacific continues to make progress on rebuilding the railroad and limited freight train service has resumed.  UP has not committed to a date for allowing the Coast Starlight to use the route as the mountain is still unstable.

A report commissioned by the Northern New England Passenger Rail Authority has quantified the current and future economic benefits of Amtrak Downeaster service.  “Amtrak Downeaster: Overview of Projected Economic Impacts,” completed by the Center for Neighborhood Technology, notes the $120 million in transit-oriented development already underway near Downeaster stations, and predicts $3.3 billion in further investment by 2030, creating over 8,000 new jobs, spurring $55 million in new annual tax revenues, and adding nearly $1 billion in annual purchasing power to the Maine economy.  Extending service to Brunswick and Rockland would generate 2,582 additional jobs, increase annual tax receipts by $16.5 million, and add $290 million annually in purchasing power.

Train operators in the UK recorded record peacetime ridership in 2007, announcing this week that 1.21 billion passengers rode the companies’ trains last year.  Ridership has been increasing steadily in the past 13 years.  The previous record was set in 1946 as soldiers from World War II traveled home.  Meanwhile, Channel Tunnel rail link operator Eurotunnel recorded a profit for the first time in its 22-year history, recording net income of $1.6 million in 2007.  Just 18 months ago, Eurotunnel had sought bankruptcy protection under the crushing load of over $12 billion in debt acquired in the run-up to – and after – the tunnel’s 1994 opening.

New York City’s plan for automobile congestion pricing collapsed on Monday at State Assembly leaders decided in a closed-door meeting not to move forward with the proposal.  New York City forfeits $354 million in special USDOT urban mobility grants that will now be awarded to other applicants.

Amtrak’s station in Niagara Falls, NY will move a more attractive and central location within the next few years.  Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) and Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-NY) announced on Tuesday that the Federal Highway Administration will expedite final environmental approval for the project, first proposed in 1987, to move Maple Leaf and Empire Service operations to the 1863 US Customs House building.  $7.2 million in federal funds are secured for the $23 million project.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R) exercised a line-item veto of a capital spending bill on Monday, axing $70 million from the Central Corridor light rail project that would link Minneapolis and St. Paul.  He also cut $5.5 million from a study to explore reinstating passenger train service to Duluth and expanding service between the Twin Cities and Chicago.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency recently announced a new contract with Amtrak to provide equipment in New Orleans that would allow evacuations by train of up to 9,000 people in a 48-hour period.  The contract, which runs through December 30, could expand to cover other vulnerable cities along the Gulf and south Atlantic coasts.

On Monday, Chris Guenzler became the first documented passenger to reach 1 million miles traveled on Amtrak.  He achieved the milestone as he arrived into La Plata, MO on eastbound Southwest Chief train 4 to the cheers of supporters.  Guenzler had passed 1 million total train travel miles last year.

Amtrak enacted an unplanned bus bridge between Carbondale and Champaign, IL this week due to Canadian National trackwork that had disrupted Illini and Saluki service.  City of New Orleans passengers were not affected.

Amtrak contractors discovered the body of a man who apparently committed suicide at the Westerly, RI station yesterday.  The station remained open while Westerly and Amtrak police began an investigation.

NARP’s final regional meeting of the season, Region 12, will take place in Sacramento on April 19.

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Apr 18, 2008: Hotline #549

NARP on April 16 submitted testimony on Fiscal Year 2009 funding to the House Appropriations subcommittee with jurisdiction over Amtrak.  The statement by Executive Director Ross Capon characterized “$1.785 billion as a minimum appropriation for Amtrak for Fiscal 2009 in the absence of a responsible request by the Bush Administration,” but caveated this with an emphasis on the importance of enabling Amtrak to put back into service its substantial number of cars idled for repairs, as well as the need to address track capacity problems like the one along Norfolk Southern in northwestern Indiana.

The statement said “sold-out trains on Amtrak means we don’t have enough capacity to meet current demand, and certainly not the larger demand that is likely in the future as more people seek alternatives to high and rising gasoline prices and airline fares.” 

Also on funding, the statement said: “Looking forward, we strongly urge the next Congress and Administration to take seriously the $9 billion a year recommendation of intercity passenger train investments contained in the report of the National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study Commission.”  Capon’s full statement is available here.

Also April 16, NARP issued a news release expressing disappointment at President Bush’s policy address on climate change Wednesday.  NARP Executive Director Ross Capon said, “The framework he proposed today ignores a key problem: The United States, with just 4.5% of the world’s population, uses 25% of the world’s oil; the U.S. imports about 60% of its oil, according to the Pew Center on Global Climate Change.” The U.S. transportation sector alone emits more CO2 than the entire economy of any other country in the world except China (US Public Interest Research Group).  Environmental Protection Agency data show that over 60% of CO2 emissions from U.S. transportation in 2005 came from personal automobiles.  Automobiles account for 40% of U.S. oil consumption, so U.S. automobiles cause about 10% of worldwide oil consumption.

Capon noted, “With an expanded national passenger train network, Americans could shift to—or expand use of—an attractive, energy-efficient travel choice that is environmentally sound, reducing both their carbon output and U.S. dependence on foreign oil.”

An earmark for a California high-speed maglev line yesterday survived an attempt to strike it from a SAFETEA-LU corrections bill.  The bill guarantees $45 million for the line’s initial segment, Las Vegas to Primm, NV, paying for environmental and other planning studies, and extends the route to Anaheim.  The 78-18 vote defeated an amendment by Jim DeMint (R-SC) that would have removed new or expanded earmarks from SAFETEA-LU. 

Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines announced a proposed merger on Monday.  The combined airline would be the largest in the world, and would hope to leverage pricing power to raise fares to counteract spiraling fuel costs as the price of oil continues to reach record levels.  The deal has gotten criticism from many directions. 

On one hand, House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee Chairman James L. Oberstar (D-MN) says the merger “will lead to fewer choices and higher prices for travelers” and will “eliminate competition from the marketplace, without addressing the high cost of fuel.”  His release stated, “Although Congress does not have the authority to halt the merger, it can compel the Department of Transportation and the Department of Justice to consider issues and evidence before making a final decision on the deal.” 

Financial Times columnist John Gapper yesterday wrote that “few mergers have combined such lofty rhetoric with such meager intent.”  Noting that the two airlines’ CEOs said merger benefits would come from “addition, rather than subtraction…[and would be] a win” for customers and communities, Gapper editorialized: “in other words, for unions, cheap fares and the cities from which [the merged airline] flies…There is not much hope of this merger doing much to dig Delta and Northwest out of their hole.” 

As American Airlines announced more cost-cutting measures this week, American CFO Tom Horton told the FT, “There really is no playbook now for $110 oil.  The revenue and expense equation is broken, and we need to go about trying to fix that.  It may very well mean a smaller industry, with less capacity flying around.”  The paper said American “now expects to trim its mainline capacity by 1.4% this year.”

The State of Iowa and Amtrak released a study today on the feasibility of passenger train service between Iowa City and the Quad Cities area, following on Amtrak’s study (funded by Illinois) about returning service between Chicago and the Quad Cities area.  The latest study envisioned three service scenarios: current railroad conditions, and top speeds of 60 mph and 79 mph.  Running time within Iowa would be 2 hours 20 minutes, 1 hour 57 minutes, and 1 hour 38 minutes, respectively.  Upfront capital costs in Iowa would be $300,000, $26.1 million, and $32.5 million, respectively.  Estimated annual ridership within Iowa with two daily round trips would be 43,800, 60,700, and 76,100, respectively.  Along the full route between Chicago and Iowa City, projected ridership is 133,800, 163,400, and 186,900, respectively.  The study news release summarizes key projections integrated from the Illinois and Iowa studies.

Virginia’s Department of Rail and Public Transportation announced funding awards last week for its Rail Enhancement Fund.  CSX will receive $9.8 million – 70 percent of the project cost – towards adding capacity between Fredericksburg and Newport News to better accommodate Amtrak trains.

Officials from the “Ark-La-Tex” region held a news conference in Marshall, TX yesterday to announce the formation of a regional coalition to seek federal funding for the South Central Higher Speed Rail Corridor between Marshall and Shreveport/Bossier, with the eventual goal of service stretching between Ft. Worth, TX and Meridian, MS.  Harrison County Judge Richard Anderson announced that the East Texas Council of Government would enter into a Memorandum of Understanding with the North Louisiana Council of Governments, and that the MOU would be signed on May 10, National Train Day, at the festivities to be held at the Marshall Amtrak station.  Judge Anderson was joined at the news conference by elected officials from around the region, Amtrak officials, and NARP board member Christina Anderson (wife of Judge Anderson).  The historic, multi-jurisdictional agreement follows a similar agreement that East Texas and Central Texas signed last August.

Utah Transit Authority’s FrontRunner commuter rail service begins on Saturday, April 26.  Grand Opening celebrations will take place at all seven stations between Ogden and Salt Lake City, with free public rides beginning at 2 PM.  Free rides will continue as the normal schedule begins on Monday, April 28 through Wednesday, April 30.

Canada’s Transport Minister Lawrence Cannon announced two appointments to the board of VIA Rail Canada on Monday, France Bilodeau and Anthony Perl.  Perl, a former NARP intern and board member, is now director of the Urban Studies program at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver and chairs the Transportation Research Board’s Committee on Intercity Passenger Rail Systems.  His latest book is ‘Transport Revolutions: Moving People and Freight Without Oil’.  Perl has been a member of NARP since 1979.

Seattle’s Waterfront Streetcar line appears to be out of service indefinitely.  It was originally closed “temporarily” in November, 2005 as a new, privately developed, mixed-use maintenance facility for the historic streetcars was slated for construction in Pioneer Square.  Complications with the developer led to missing the slated re-opening in 2007, and now Seattle Metro officials predict the earliest date of completion of the facility would be 2010.  But reconstruction of the Alaskan Way Viaduct along the Waterfront is now scheduled to begin in 2012, a massive project that would preclude any streetcar operations.  That will not be completed until at least 2018, leaving the future of Seattle’s historic streetcars in doubt.

Springfield, IL plans to improve its Amtrak station with parking, lighting, seating, restroom, and other possible upgrades.  A final cost has not been determined, but the city would contribute funds from a downtown tax-increment financing district.  Union Pacific owns the station.

Amtrak is offering a 25% discount for travel on the three California corridors on May 10, National Train Day.  Tickets may be purchased between April 23 and May 7 with promotion code V586, which is valid on the Capitol Corridor, Pacific Surfliners, San Joaquins, and most connecting Thruways.

Amtrak has announced that it will shut down track 4 of the Northeast Corridor between New Jersey Transit’s Jersey Avenue station (south of New Brunswick) and Trenton for several months, starting on May 11.  This is part of the project to replace deficient concrete railroad ties.  Track 4 is the southbound local track, and NJT will lengthen some schedules and reduce some service temporarily during the track work.

A group of youths discovered a potentially explosive device on Amtrak right-of-way in New Haven, CT on Tuesday evening.  Amtrak, Metro-North, and Shore Line East trains were held until Amtrak and New Haven Police and the New Haven Fire Department secured the area, and a bomb technician from Yale University was dispatched.  The device was eventually detonated.

Southbound Amtrak City of New Orleans train 59 was delayed about 90 minutes on Monday after a prank caller notified Hammond, LA Police of a hostage situation aboard the train.  “The person supposedly in distress was not on the train,” said Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari.

Amtrak’s Southwest Chief and Sunset Limited were both disrupted by freight derailments over the weekend.  Chief passengers were bussed between Kingman and Los Angeles on Sunday, while Sunset passengers were bussed between Tucson and Los Angeles.

NARP’s final regional meeting of the season, Region 12, will take place in Sacramento tomorrow, April 19.

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Apr 25, 2008: Hotline #550

On Tuesday, the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science & Transportation held a hearing regarding the report of the National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study Commission.  Witnesses included five Commission members, including Vice Chair Jack Schenendorf (Counsel, Covington & Burling), Wisconsin DOT Secretary Frank Busalacchi who also chairs States for Passenger Rail Coalition, Steve Heminger (Executive Director, San Francisco Bay Area Metropolitan Transportation Commission), Matt Rose (Chairman, President, and CEO, BNSF Railway), and Patrick Quinn (Co-Chairman and President, U.S. Xpress Enterprises).

In her opening statement Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX), noted that Texas has some of the fastest growing metropolitan areas, where congestion and lack of sufficient transportation stifle productivity.  She also said, “I do appreciate that transit and intercity rail are part of the [Commission] recommendations, but there is too much emphasis on the status quo.  Amtrak is not mentioned once, and should be integral to growth.”  Busalacchi noted at the end of the hearing that the report’s proposal for passenger rail growth did not mention Amtrak was because, “at the end of the day, it may not be only Amtrak.  I feel very strongly that we need to reauthorize Amtrak and give them the money they need, but we really need a [broader, mode-specific] federal commitment here—like we made a commitment to highways and airports.”

Sen. Mark Pryor (D-AR) asked if Transportation Secretary Mary Peters dissented from the report because of its emphasis on raising fuel taxes.  Schenendorf said that she saw “too much of a federal role, period, especially regarding transit and rail.”  Rose asserted that “we had more points of agreement than disagreement.”  Earlier in the hearing, Heminger noted, “There is no substitute for federal leadership.  Without it, we wouldn’t have the Interstate Highway System, or transit to the extent that we do.”  He also predicted that the private sector would not step up to provide the 40% of transportation capital funds the federal government currently provides.

Documents and full video of the hearing are available here.

On Wednesday, the House Transportation & Infrastructure Railroads Subcommittee held a hearing on Rail Capacity issues.  In prepared testimony, Amtrak President Alex Kummant said 70% of Amtrak’s FY2007 passenger-miles were generated over freight railroads, and 80% of total train-miles are operated over the top four Class One railroads.  He said that last week’s Amtrak Board meeting in Denver included a meeting with the Class Ones that was brokered by Transportation Secretary Mary Peters.  He went on to assert, “When freight railroads make [timely dispatching of] Amtrak a priority, it improves operating discipline overall… benefitting shippers as well.”

Subcommittee Chair Corrine Brown (D-FL) pressed Kummant on the continuing lack of service east of New Orleans along the Sunset Limited route, nearly three years after Hurricane Katrina.  Kummant said, “I don’t really see any way to bring back service at this point, with the infrastructure, and there’s no budget for it…It was never very effective service, going through these towns in the middle of the night, three times a week, always late…We’re putting all our energy into corridor discussions in Florida, and we think that corridor service to Mobile could be a good model.”

Brown retorted, “I will continue to provide a lot of pain for you in that area.  It’s not just transportation, it’s homeland security, it’s safety.  The train could exist to get people out of harm’s way.  Of course it wasn’t a good service.  We have to work innovatively.  We need to work with the communities like New Orleans to create a service that works.  It could be a New Orleans-Orlando train with better timing.  I wish you would go back to the drawing table and come up with something.”  Kummant said, “I understand.”

Documents and full video of the hearing are available here.

Maine’s Senate passed additional transportation funding late April 18 that will include capital funds to extend Amtrak’s Downeaster from Portland to Brunswick, which could happen within two years.  Once Brunswick is reached, the plan is to expand Brunswick-Bath-Wiscasset-Rockland service from seasonal to year-round.  A Brunswick extension also opens up potential for Brunswick-Augusta service over a state-owned line, and (via Yarmouth Junction near Freeport) for service to Auburn-Lewiston, Bethel and even Montreal.  However, there is still uncertainty about Downeaster operating funds after federal Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality expire next year; Gov. John Baldacci (D) has pledged to include these funds in his supplemental budget request.

The tenants and owners of New York Penn Station have come to an agreement to build a permanent outdoor security barrier outside the station (and Madison Square Garden) following a letter from New York Police Commissioner Ray Kelly decrying three years of delays on the project.  NYCMTA will use $15 million already secured for the project; construction will begin next year and should be completed in 2010.

Rep. Ciro Rodriguez (D-TX) will make a whistle-stop tour on Amtrak’s Sunset Limited through his vast West Texas Congressional district 23 on Saturday, May 3 to discuss economic issues with news media and constituents.  He will board eastbound train 2 in El Paso that morning, make appearances at the stops in Alpine and Sanderson, and detrain in Del Rio to attend a rodeo.  In his media advisory, Rep. Rodriguez noted that he is timing his trip to be one week ahead of National Train Day.

Florida Gov. Charlie Crist (R) proclaimed this week to be Train Safety Awareness Week.  He said, in a statement, “This important observance is a state priority and will lead to greater safety awareness and a reduction in highway-rail grade crossing collisions and trespassing incidents.”  Dozens of law enforcement agencies have joined CSX, Amtrak, Tri-Rail, Florida DOT, Operation Lifesaver, and other rail interests in a push for public awareness of safety around railroads and rail grade-crossings.

Amtrak will shift 80 maintenance positions away from its Beech Grove, IN shops by the summer as the company implements a new maintenance program called Life Cycle Preventive Maintenance that involves phasing overhaul requirements so they are met when the units would normally be out of service anyway.  27 positions specializing in wheels will go to the shops in Chicago, IL, while 53 locomotive maintenance positions will move to Wilmington, DE.  Amtrak told the Indianapolis Business Journal that 475 workers will remain at Beech Grove.

Amtrak’s Spring/Summer timetable has been published and will be effective May 12.  There were no major changes.  The schedule reflects this month’s elimination of the single-stop Acela Express round-trip between New York and Washington in favor of a new Acela round-trip between Boston and New York.  Eastbound Lake Shore Limited train 48 operates 15-40 minutes earlier from Toledo to Albany.  The Capitol Limited now has an ongoing Happy Hour with drink specials.  Cross-Country Café (Diner-Lounge) is now the only active food service car on the Texas Eagle, though an unstaffed Sightseer Lounge will remain in the consist.  Coast Starlight information outlines the new amenities as part of the route relaunch, for which a date has not yet been formalized.  In California, the Merced-Salinas-Monterey-Santa Cruz San Joaquin Thruway route will be discontinued due to insufficient ridership and revenue.

A sinkhole south of Central Station in Memphis, TN has forced Amtrak’s City of New Orleans onto a detour route that bypasses the station.  Passengers boarding or detraining in will be bussed to and from alternate locations until the sinkhole is repaired.  Passengers may experience delays between one and two hours during the detours.  NARP applauds the cooperation between Amtrak and Canadian National to maintain service during this unforeseen event.

Westbound Amtrak California Zephyr train 5 detoured through Wyoming on Monday after a Union Pacific freight train was disabled inside the Moffat Tunnel in the Rocky Mountains.

Amtrak bussed passengers between St. Louis and Chicago for much of the day on Wednesday after a Union Pacific freight train derailed in Pontiac, IL.  The Texas Eagle was turned at St. Louis.

National Train Day is Saturday, May 10, and events are happening across the country!  Be sure to check back with the NARP web site regularly for more details.

The May 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.

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