Aug 28, 2009: Hotline #619

Hotline #619
August 28, 2009

The deadline for the next phase of high-speed rail development saw an intensification of focus by state applicants in their competition for federal stimulus funds.  While July’s first round of “pre-applications” saw over a $100 billion in proposed projects, the final application deadline for Tracks 1, 3, and 4 projects (for definitions of each track, see Hotline #613) on August 24 saw state transportation agencies announcing less than $7 billion in high-speed rail projects.

The precipitous decline demonstrates how much work the Federal Railroad Administration has been doing to encourage state transportation agencies to submit only truly shovel-ready projects.  States with more ambitious plans will likely resubmit these projects into the Track 2 pipeline, designed for long-term development of corridors, the deadline for which is October 2.

Echoing Americans’ desire for high-speed trains, U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood declared “If you build it, they will come.”

Some developments of note:

While California saw the biggest drop—from the original $20 billion in projects—the proposed new high-speed railroad from Los Angeles to San Francisco still led the way with the highest dollar request at $1.1 billion.

Despite a press release by the Coalition of Northeast Governors stating the contrary, the Northeast States seemed to marginalize development of the NEC for the most part, the most significant request being for a $60 million engineering study on the Baltimore Potomac Tunnel.

Louisiana passengers are bitterly disappointed that Governor Bobby Jindal’s administration has decided to cease efforts to develop a New Orleans to Baton Rouge service.  Louisiana’s Transportation Secretary William Akner has stated that the move was solely motivated by concern over operating costs.  Many observers, however, have labeled the move a political one; Governor Jindal, tapped as a potential Republican nominee for President in 2012, has been a vocal critic of the efficacy of the stimulus bill.

Here is a list of the applications that NARP has been able to confirm:

California—$1.1 billion— Transbay Terminal “box,” upgrades to sections of the San Francisco-Anaheim main line in preparation for major work

Connecticut—$64 million—New Haven to Springfield commuter service, miscellaneous projects

Delaware—$17 million—Third track between Wilmington and New Haven

Florida—$270 million—Construction of Sun Rail commuter rail line

Illinois—$550 million—CREATE Project, upgrading of sidings between Chicago and St. Louis, nine miles of double-tracking

Indiana—$71 million—Indiana’s section of a Chicago to Detroit line

Maryland—$360 million – Engineering study for the replacement of the Baltimore Potomac Tunnel, planning to redevelop BWI station, increase capacity at Union Station, region wide bridge work

Massachusetts—$69 million – Upgrade of Springfield to Worcester line, restoration of service along the Connecticut River for the Vermonter

Michigan—$830 million – Upgrade of route between Chicago and Pontiac, new stations

Missouri—$201 million – Upgrades on tracks between Kansas City to St. Louis

New Jersey—$39 million – Replacement of the Portal Bridge (part of the Access to the Region’s Core project)

New York—$565 million – Third track around Rochester, improvements along Albany to Buffalo and Albany to Montreal, elimination of Schenectady bottleneck

North Carolina—$76 million – Raleigh to Virginia route improvements

Pennsylvania—$28 million – Engineering study for Harrisburg to Philadelphia speed upgrades

Texas—$1.8 billion – “T-bone” corridor (includes connections between San Antonio, Dallas, Houston, and Austin)

Vermont—$52 million – Improvements to tracks between St. Albans and Brattleboro

Virginia—$75 million – Construction of third track between Arkendale and Powell’s Creek

Washington—$435 million—Upgrades to tracks between Seattle and Portland

Special thanks to the work done by the Transportation Politic


A crowd of over two dozen people held a rally in front of the East Lansing Amtrak station, protesting a proposed $3.6 million cut to train service in Michigan.
Matt Marderosian, head of Save Our Trains Michigan (and NARP member), organized the rally to warn passengers about the cuts, which he fears could set up a chain-reaction that could eliminate passenger trains in the state.
“I’m standing up for the passengers who want to keep the service,” Marderosian told the Lansing State Journal.
The Republican-led State Senate has proposed a budget which would halve the state’s current $7.3 million outlay for the Blue Water and the Pere Marquette.  Senate Democrats, along with Democratic Governor Jennifer Granholm, have proposed an alternate budget which would cut Amtrak funding to $5.7 million.  Amtrak has not announced what the exact implications of these proposed cuts would be.

Ridership on the Blue Water route grew by more than 68 percent between 2003 and 2008, serving 136,538 passengers in 2008 alone.  Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari attributed the soaring ridership to a decision by the company to focus on serving those traveling within the state, though he warned about the negative effects that cutting service, potentially to less-than-daily, could have on ridership..

“You can lose momentum, because then the passengers aren’t sure that the train’s travel days meet their needs… daily is easy to remember.”


Amtrak is offering a two-for-one deal on the Downeaster between now and December 28.  If you buy one adult-fare (at least three days in advance), you can get a second ticket free.  The Downeaster runs between Boston, Massachusetts and Portland, Maine.

You can find complete details and restrictions Amtrak’s Website.


Amtrak has announced a Glacier National Park Sweepstakes, a nine-day vacation for two aboard a train from Chicago to Glacier National Park in Montana.  The trip is worth nearly $6,000.

Enter to win at Amtrak Vacations’ website.


The Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) has urged the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to adopt new safety guidelines for high-speed rail grade crossings.  The ICC is recommending uniform systems for regulating both moving vehicles and vehicles stopped at a crossing, modeling a system in existence only on the Northeast Corridor.

The ICC calls for three new HSR grade crossing principles: elimination of all redundant or unnecessary grade crossings that cannot be made safe due to crossing geometry or proximity of complex highway intersections; installation of either four-quadrant gate or barrier gate safety systems that are equipped with presence/intrusion detection and tied to the new Positive Train Control systems; elimination of or grade-separate all grade crossings where trains speeds exceed 110 mph.


Virgin Atlantic Airways announced an e-ticketing arrangement with Eurostar, a high-speed rail operator with destinations in England, France, and Belgium.

Passengers will be able to easily coordinate booking for Eurostar trains on Virgin Atlantic’s website, allowing for easy connections.

Alan Lias, Head of Loyalty, Virgin Atlantic, told reporters: “This new agreement gives Virgin Atlantic passengers even more flexibility.  They can quickly and effortlessly book Eurostar tickets when booking a flight, and experience the delights of Eurostar’s key destinations - London, Lille, Paris and Brussels.”

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