National Association of Railroad Passengers: www.narprail.org

Hotline #462

Senator Trent Lott (R-MS) announced that an agreement had been reached with Senate leadership to bring S. 1516, the bipartisan Amtrak Reauthorization bill, to the Senate floor after the August recess.  No firm date has been set for consideration, and it appears that the Senate will only be in session for two weeks in September before adjourning until after the November elections (Update: Congress will likely remain in Washington for the full month of September).  Let your Senators know that you want them to vote yes on S. 1516!  Go to our Action Alert page for more information.

British officials foiled a plot to blow up trans-Atlantic airlines flying between London and the United States.  In response, security was heavily increase in the United States for both domestic and foreign air travel.  Amtrak increased police patrols, K-9 units, and other security measures.  While some may call for draconian security measures on all forms of transport, today’s Financial Times has the following to say in its lead editorial:

“Yet no system is perfectly secure.  And even if the world’s aircraft could be made secure at a reasonable cost in time and money, terrorists will always have other options as simple as truck bombs or explosives on trains and buses.  There will be more attacks, perhaps deadly and dramatic ones. 

“The first response must be to adopt a foreign policy that saps terrorists of support without pandering to their demands.  It should not be necessary to remind either the US or the British government that it is not possible simply to kill or catch all the terrorists until there are none left—a pointless strategy based on what one might call the “lump of terror” fallacy. 

“The second response must be a sense of proportion.  More than 3,000 people died last year on UK roads, but the roads stay open.  Even the worst acts of terrorism reap their largest toll in hysterical responses.  Scotland Yard’s statement that they had disrupted a plot to cause “mass murder on an unimaginable scale” was alarmist even if it is true.  Journalists—and terrorists—are perfectly capable of spreading hyperbole without any help from the police.  The most powerful answer to terrorism is not to be terrified.”

The State of Vermont is considering participating in a demonstration project that would re-equip the Vermonter with Colorado Rail Car DMU units.  While it would eliminate through service to New York and Washington, a cross-platform transfer at New Haven would be set up.  State officials feel that the smaller train would better fit the needs of Vermont and the quicker acceleration of the DMU’s would speed up the schedule and increase the utility of the train.  “With a new train and new faster service, coupled with some marketing money, we can make it an attractive option,” Neale Lunderville, Vermont Transportation Secretary said.

The pension bill approved by the Senate and expected to go to the White House for signing boosts employer contributions to many pension plans and requires that all plans have 100% of assets to cover their liabilities within seven years.  However, Northwest and Delta will get 17 years and the right to assume an investment return on assets of 8.85%, about a third higher than other companies.  This is partly to encourage those airlines not to dump their plans on the federal government.  The Wall Street Journal reported July 31 that, “as of December, Delta’s pensions were under funded by $6.4 billion and Northwest’s by $3.7 billion.”  American and Continental get 10 years, but cannot use the 8.85% return rate.  The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation in recent years absorbed terminated pension plans from United Airlines and US Airways, significant factors in the $22.8 billion deficit the federal agency faces.

The August 6 issue of Financial Times was even more pointed: “Senators from Texas, Ohio and New Jersey—where American and Continental have large hubs—withdrew their opposition to the more favourable treatment for the bankrupt carriers when Senate leaders promised to revisit the issue in September.” That means American and Continental get another bite at the apple.

The Amtrak station employees in Kissimmee, FL have received an Amtrak Award for Safety Excellence.  There has not been a single loss-time injury at the station since the ticket agents became Amtrak employees, believe to be in the late 1970’s.  (If anyone reading this hotline knows exactly when ticket agents became Amtrak employees in Florida, please let the NARP office know.  Thanks!)

The San Diego Trolley’s Green Line celebrated its one year anniversary this week.  According to San Diego Trolley spokesman Luis Gonzalez, 40-percent of Green Line passengers are first time users of public transportation.  In addition, the stop at San Diego State University has not only introduced a younger demographic to mass transit, but calls for later service at night to downtown San Diego.  The Trolley has listened: starting in September, the green line will run until 2am on the weekends.  The entire system itself, the first modern light rail system in the United States, is 25 years old.

Amtrak has restored same-day round trip Thruway Bus service to Yosemite National Park.  Direct service had been suspended since late May, due to rockslides on Route 140, necessitating a lengthy detour from Merced to the Park.  The new service operates from Modesto, CA, once again allowing day trips to Yosemite.

The electrical outlets on Acela Express trainsets are back in service. They were removed from service in mid-July (Hotline #459) after a problem was identified with the ground fault system.

The Wisconsin Department of Transportation, the town of Sturtevant, and Amtrak will dedicate the new station in Sturtevant, WI tomorrow, August 12.  Full service to the new station begins on Monday.  The ceremonies will begin at 11:30am and will include many local dignitaries and Governor Jim Doyle.  All are invited.  To permit people to attend the dedication by rail, Amtrak Hiawatha trains #334 and #333 (before the ceremony) and #335 and #336 (after) will stop at both the old and new stations in Sturtevant.

The new Amtrak Vacations booklet is available from Amtrak.  A new company, Yankee Holidays has taken over the popular program, which ended abruptly in late 2003 after the previous operator, Private Label Tours ceased operations.  The brochure also revives the air-rail program, where passengers take the train in one direction and fly in the other.  You can order the booklet at Amtrak Vacations’ website.

NARP announced an effort this week to coordinate the establishment of teams to promote each long distance train and establish a solid grass roots presence.  Read the full details of the project and how you can get involved.