House Subcommittee Considers Expanding Passenger Train Service at Pittsburgh Hearing

Wednesday, July 08, 2009

NARP Council Member Kenneth Joseph reports on the hearing at which he testified.

The Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials of the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee held a field hearing in Pittsburgh on June 22. I was one of the witnesses, testifying on behalf of NARP. Click here for information about the hearing and copies of all witnesses’ testimony, including mine.

Alongside me at the witness table was Henry Posner III, Chairman, Railroad Development Corporation. RDC owns Iowa Interstate but also runs some passenger trains abroad. This caused Rep. Bill Shuster (R-PA), the subcommittee’s top Republican to remark, “I’m glad to know someone can run passenger trains at a profit,” a subject that seemed important to him. Posner submitted as testimony his recent Pittsburgh Post-Gazette op-ed column arguing for public-private partnership to invest in expanding track capacity on the Norfolk Southern Harrisburg-Pittsburgh mainline to permit introduction of much faster, more frequent passenger train service.

I endorsed this in my statement, while also urging a more immediate action—reinstatement of the Three Rivers to give Pennsylvanians a second schedule choice across their state and direct, daily service between Philadelphia, other Pennsylvania points and Chicago.

Maglev got more attention in this hearing than it deserved. At least three times, Dr. Fred Gurney, PhD, President and CEO of Maglev, Inc. assured the Congressmen that the Maglev line in China is “what President Obama and Vice President Biden mean when they say ‘high speed rail.’ ” Rep. Jason Altmire (D-PA), who chaired the hearing, was sympathetic and expressed hope that Maglev Inc. would soon receive $45,000,000 to prepare construction drawings for its Pittsburgh-Greensburg maglev line.

In response to questions, Lorenzo Simonelli, President and CEO of GE Transportation, suggested that GE’s new generation of clean, diesel-electric locomotives would be a better option than maglev. Simonelli’s excellent presentation elicited support, partly of course because the units would be built near Erie, PA.

The strangest testimony came from Patrick J. McMahon, president of Amalgamated Transportation Union Local 85, the local transit operator’s main labor union, who dismissed the whole idea of high speed rail and stated that we should build light rail instead. He suggested various specific extensions to the Pittsburgh light rail system that I—as a lifetime Pittsburgh resident—did not think were very well thought out. He also criticized the proposal to run commuter rail from New Kensington to Pittsburgh on the Allegheny Valley Railroad. Reasonable people can disagree about the merits of this concept, but it has many supporters, including Rep. Altmire.

Rep. Shuster provided a light moment when he asked Dr. Gurney, “I read somewhere that maglev could go straight up.” The maglev advocate replied, “You probably could, but you wouldn’t want to for passenger comfort reasons.”

Unfortunately, I was the only witness to address what could be done to improve service to Western Pennsylvania in the near future. Rep. Altmire was particularly interested in improving Pittsburgh to Cleveland, although it was not clear if he was looking for near term or long term improvments.

—Kenneth Joseph
Member, NARP Council of Representatives

Posted by NARP

Tags: congress, expansion, ge, high-speed rail, light rail, maglev, passenger rail, pennsylvania, three rivers,

Flag Stops: Awareness-Raising Edition

Thursday, July 16, 2009

Vermonters organize to lure riders, an express bus service goes under, airlines are still in trouble, gas prices race upwards, and other dispatches from across our infrastructurally-challenged country.

After winning the fight to save Amtrak’s Ethan Allen Express from budget cuts, grassroots volunteers are coming together in Rutland, Vermont, in hopes of attracting more riders to the train. Friends of Rutland Rail has been formed to raise awareness about the service, coordinate volunteer train hosts (modeled after successful host programs in Maine and North Carolina), and make the Rutland station more inviting. TrainRiders/Northeast hopes to foster the coalescing of similar groups in several Vermont towns served by Amtrak’s Vermonter.

NARP Council member Kenneth Joseph’s testimony to Congress urging the reinstatement of the Three Rivers has generated discussion (see comments) about the implications of last week’s announcement [PDF] that the Pittsburgh-Harrisburg Steel City Flyer express business-class bus service will come to an end. Part of what doomed the service, which was designed to connect with Amtrak’s frequent Keystone service at Harrisburg, is the inability of buses to drop passengers at the Amtrak station due to the exclusive contract between the City of Harrisburg (which owns the station) and bus operator Capitol Trailways. Other factors include the inflexibility of many corporations’ auto-friendly travel policies as well as that trains are generally more desirable than buses. NARP believes that faster, more frequent train service along the Pittsburgh-Philadelphia corridor, beginning with the reinstatement of the Three Rivers will be more successful in luring both business and leisure travelers from their cars.

A new study by the Center for Clean Air Policy reconfirms the key role better transportation choices play in cutting air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. The paper [PDF] concludes “comprehensive application of smart growth best practices and improved transportation choices could significantly reduce transportation emissions at a net cost savings to society.” The provision of alternative forms of mobility and the improved planning of cities and towns would shave ten percent off the number of miles Americans drive at a net cost savings to society through avoided infrastructure costs, savings in fuel and insurance charges, and higher tax revenues from more valuable land development. NARP hopes that this timely report, prepared with the help of our friends at Transportation for America, will be read widely on Capitol Hill as the reauthorization bill is debated.

The recession, higher fares, service cuts and concerns about the H1N1 flu are driving declines in passenger air travel. In May, total passenger load on US airlines fell 9.5 percent and passenger revenue fell 26 percent, accompanying a 22 percent dip in air cargo traffic. These revenue drops, combined with cost hikes in labor and fuel, add up to an ongoing lack of profitability in the US airline industry.This week, US Airways Group said that it will cut 600 jobs this fall, including airport ticket and gate agents and baggage handlers, because of the economy. Though Amtrak ridership weathered the recession longer than most, it is also down, with May ridership and passenger-miles down 10% and passenger revenues down 13% from a year earlier.

At the same time, gas prices are once again on the rise, at the quickest rate since September 2005. This time, more expensive gas is a primary factor causing the Consumer Price Index to go up. If people had more travel choices, perhaps every gas price hike wouldn’t make such a big dent in people’s pocketbooks.

The director of IBM’s Global Rail Innovation Center in Beijing suggests that the US’s position of playing catch-up to the rest of the developed world in the passenger rail department may actually help us by providing many models of success and failure from which the American rail industry can learn. A valid point. Of course, the same could have been said twenty years ago…

LCL: A northeast Indiana columnist applauds the Midwest’s high-speed rail plans while a City Council member in Vicennes, IN, rebuts our loyal nemesis, CATO’s Randal O’Toole; the editors of the Illinois capital’s daily paper say that it’s fine to dream big about bullet trains, but boosting existing trains to 110 mph is more realistic and cost-effective in lean times; and a travel writer extols the National Park Service’s Trails and Rails program, which provides interpretive narration for many scenic and historic route segments.

—Malcolm Kenton

Posted by NARP

Tags: air pollution, airlines, express bus, gasoline prices, grassroots advocacy, greenhouse gases, high-speed rail, pennsylvania, revenue, ridership, trains, vermont,

Hopping the Local: Northeast Edition

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Here is a round-up of items of interest from the January and February newsletters of state rail passenger associations in the Northeast:

From the Empire State Passenger Association’s ESPA Express
The total amount of money committed to passenger rail improvement projects in New York State from all sources (federal, state and local) now exceeds $300 million.
New York State is investing $54.6 million in constructing a high-speed third track on the CSX Empire Corridor mainline west of Rochester, and is now finalizing the agreements necessary for work to begin. Completion will mean more reliable Empire Service, Maple Leaf, and Lake Shore Limited trains.
The nine-member New York State High-Speed Rail Planning Board, created by legislation signed into law October 19, 2009, remains empty. Neither former Governor David Paterson nor current Governor Andrew Cuomo (both D) have made an appointment to the Board.
Amtrak Empire District Superintendent Kevin Chittenden wants Amtrak riders in New York State to tell him about their trips. Both positive and negative feedback is encouraged. Write to him c/o Amtrak / 525 East St. / Rensselaer, NY 12144-2324 and send a copy to ESPA President Bruce Becker.
The Finger Lakes Railway announced that it will not run excursion trains on its former New York Central and Lehigh Valley lines this year, apparently due to the slow economy. There is a small possibility that a third-party operator will come in to run the trains.

From the Delaware Valley Association of Rail Passengers’ Delaware Valley Rail Passenger
UTS-Rotem, a Japanese-based railcar manufacturer, is making new equipment for the Southeast Pennsylvania Transit Authority’s (SEPTA) Regional Rail service, at its new plant in South Philadelphia, representing the company’s first built-in-America trains. However, the company is already past its contractural deadline to deliver the entire order to SEPTA, and is paying SEPTA $200 per car per day in late fees.
On March 13, SEPTA restored Sunday Regional Rail service from Philadelphia to Wilmington, Delaware’s newly-reopened Biden Station.
DVARP remains opposed to key aspects of SEPTA’s plans to introduce new fare payment technology that it worries will inconvenience riders and force many to pay more than they currently do.
New Jersey Transit completed the southward extension of the Hudson-Bergen Line light rail to 8th Street in Bayonne on January 31.

From the New Jersey Association of Railroad Passengers’ Newsletter Report
Capital improvements are being made to the Trenton-Camden diesel light-rail River Line, including the installation of more double track that will result in better timekeeping.
Construction of the Pennsauken Transit Center is progressing. The facility will make possible a direct transfer between the River Line and New Jersey Transit regional rail service to Atlantic City and Philadelphia. This will bring Atlantic City closer by rail to many other New Jersey communities.

—Malcolm Kenton
Posted by Malcolm Kenton
Tags: amtrak, commuter rail, empire corridor, new jersey, new york, northeast, passenger trains, pennsylvania, philadelphia, river line, septa, transit,

Study funded for better Western Pennsylvania service

Thursday, June 30, 2011

NARP Council of Representatives member Michael Alexander of Pittsburgh submitted the following report:

The Keystone West High Speed Rail Study has been established to look at ways to improve and expand passenger rail service between Harrisburg and Pittsburgh, PA. Half of the $1.5 million dollar cost is being provided by the Federal Railroad Administration through the High-Speed Intercity Passenger Rail grant program (HSIPR), matched by funds from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Amtrak’s eastbound Pennsylvanian in Duncannon, PA. Photo by Daniel Manganello on Flickr.
Speaking in Pittsburgh, a Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) official described the goal of the study as modest and gradual improvement in passenger rail service between Harrisburg and Pittsburgh PA. The result should be better service in terms of frequency, time, and connectivity to other modes of transport. The goal is train travel times that are competitive with the automobile, which does not necessarily mean reaching a 110-mph top speed, which is the federal minimum standard for “high-speed rail.”

Robert Garrett of PennDOT, Project Manager for the study, and Rick Shannon of the consulting firm of McCormick Taylor talked about the project at the monthly meeting of Western Pennsylvanians for Passenger Rail (WPPR). Also present at the June 27 event were Pittsburgh and Greensburg planning officials, staff members from NGOs, and representatives of political leaders and private industry. The Pittsburgh Tribune Review covered the meeting.

Garrett will be making another presentation at the Railroaders Memorial Museum in Altoona, PA, on a date in August to be determined.

WPPR was founded less than two years ago to bring more and better rail passenger service to western Pennsylvania. Organizers include Ken Joseph—who arranged with his law firm, Pepper Hamilton, to host this meeting—and Michael Alexander, both of whom serve on NARP’s Council of Representatives.

Posted by Malcolm Kenton
Tags: harrisburg, high-speed rail, passenger rail study, pennsylvania, pittsburgh, rail passenger advocacy, train frequencies,

©2010 National Association of Railroad Passengers | » NARP website

» Recent Entries

» Blogroll

National & General

Regional & Local

» Terms of Service for Comments

You may register to post comments in response to NARP-generated postings on the Blog. By registering you agree 1) that all comments will be relevant to the respective posting and 2) not to post any messages that are obscene, vulgar, slanderous, hateful, threatening, or that violate any laws. We reserve the right to permanently block postings from any user who does not abide by the above terms. NARP reserves the right to remove, edit, or move any messages for any reason.

» Monthly Archives

RSS 1.0 | RSS 2.0 | Atom
What is RSS?