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TRAINS: A travel choice Americans want

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Ways Without Means

Thursday, July 02, 2009

Food for thought on one of the busiest travel holidays of the year.

Few would defend America’s current transport policy. Each year congestion costs more than $78 billion in wasted hours and petrol. Washington’s main transport strategy has been not to have one. The Department of Transportation (DoT) runs 108 different programmes. But an integrated system for planning—one that includes passenger rail, freight, highways and mass transport—does not exist. Full analyses of projects’ costs or benefits are rare. —The Economist, June 20-26

As we head into one of the busiest travel holidays of the year, when many will face slow going on the roads and crowded flights, it is a good time to remind ourselves just how much work is needed to make our society as mobile as it could be. Despite a small drop in gas prices, USA Today reports in a cover story that the country is in the midst of “the longest and steepest decline in driving since the invention of the automobile.” Since last November, the drop in vehicle miles traveled on American thoroughfares is akin to “taking between 8 million and 10 million drivers off the road.” Much of this may be due to the state of the economy, which is forcing many to forego travel or adjust their plans, but the article also notes the increasing number of Americans opting for less car-dependent lifestyles. It makes one wonder if we would be better able to weather this recession if we had a smart transportation strategy, one that provided real choices and made getting around safer and more affordable, accessible and enjoyable for all. Motor vehicles alone will not be able to provide the mobility people are demanding in a way that enhances our quality of life.

Fortunately, the woeful state of American mobility is receiving long-overdue attention in Washington. But, as The Economist notes (and NARP has been pointing out for some time), the main well of money for transportation improvements is about to run dry, and we don’t have a viable plan for replenishing it. A set of worthy goals has been written, but the Obama Administration wants to borrow from the General Fund to pay for them, a desire confirmed in a document released by DOT this week (see Hotline #611, 3rd story). Tapping into the Treasury for such consistent expenditures is highly unsustainable in the long run as it adds to the defecit and relies on the whims of Congressional appropriators. The Administration says it needs more time to figure out a sustainable long-term funding mechanism that will also repay the loans from the General Fund.

Congress has given us “cash for clunkers,” yet we struggle to find the cash to overhaul our ‘clunker’ of a transportation system. If we don’t get on track (literally and figuratively) to a robust and sustainable system now, all Americans will continue to pay a higher price: as travelers, consumers and taxpayers. It’s up to all of us as citizens and voters to give our leaders the political will to do what needs to be done. We must pay a little more now to build the safe, efficient, multi-modal mobility network we deserve in order to avoid a great deal of pain later.

—Malcolm Kenton

Posted by NARP

Tags: advocacy, affordable, driving, economy, funding, gasoline, highway trust fund, politics, recession, transportation, travel,

Flag Stops: Dreams and Schemes

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

NARP hits YouTube, hopes for the Sunset, omissions of a high-speed rail critic, transit cuts cripple Berlin, why more should be spent on transportation in a recession, and more.

  • NARP continues to expand its online presence. We have just released our first YouTube video. It is designed for those who are less familiar with NARP’s work, so please share it widely with friends, family, co-workers and other acquaintances. You can also use our convenient web form to share with us why you are invested in our cause and why others should be concerned about high-quality transportation choices.
  • Our friends at Trains for America echo the feeling among much of the rail advocacy community that Amtrak’s report on restoring service between New Orleans and Orlando leaves much to be desired. Of course, the final decision rests with Congress because Amtrak doesn’t have enough money to run the train. That’s why it’s important that Amtrak receives its full requested appropriation for Fiscal Year 2010, and then some.
  • Not only does the transportation and housing spending bill that passed the US House of Representatives on Thursday contain a boost for high-speed rail programs—more than the President sought—it also funds six rail transit projects, from Miami to Chicago to Fort Worth, Los Angeles and Honolulu. (Source: Congressional Quarterly)
  • A New York Times blog entry casts doubt on the greenhouse gas-reduction benefits of California’s high-speed rail project. The writer says that the heavy carbon-intensity of the line’s construction should be taken into account, but he doesn’t factor the construction of existing highways or airports into their carbon footprints and fails to consider the low-carbon lifestyles that rail would foster. Luckily, several astute readers have addressed these omissions in the comments.
  • A Michigan business blogger says her state’s share of Amtrak’s operating budget should be cut because of the sour economy. In reality, the recession argues for doing the exact opposite. The recession is a convenient excuse for curtailing all sorts of public investments. Transportation investments, particularly those that provide better, greener mobility options, create jobs and keep the economy moving. For the sake of consistency, the author should also call for diminished highway spending.
  • The airline industry continues to slide deeper into a financial hole, as revenues per passenger mile are declining by greater percentages each month. While the recession has contributed to a drop in demand for all longer-distance travel, rising fuel and labor prices are already forcing cost cuts and will continue to create trouble for airlines. Once the economy recovers, travelers will face greater headaches when flying, and the demand for better alternatives will intensify.
  • A spate of technical problems has forced dramatic service cuts on Berlin’s S-Bahn system of rapid surface-level trains. The consequences have been disastrous, but perhaps not as catastrophic as a similar mishap for a major US rail transit system, thanks to the redundancies inherent in the other rail transit offerings available to Berliners. If a city like New York were to cut 70% of subway service, the choking of roadways with cars, taxis and buses would be unimaginable.

  • LCL: Another free marketeer decries a rail expansion plan simply because, like virtually all transportation systems in the world, it will require government investment for both construction and operation; Secretary LaHood reiterates his foward-looking commitments, touts the recent high-speed rail pre-apps, and hones in on reducing vehicle miles driven as key to trimming transportation’s carbon footprint; A good rant on the many advantages of rail transit over rapid buses; A look inside Chairman Oberstar’s surface transportation plans; and How many reminders do we need that overdependence on cars is bad for us?

    —Malcolm Kenton

    Posted by Malcolm Kenton

    Tags: airlines, amtrak, berlin, california, carbon, florida, gulf coast, high-speed rail, passenger trains, recession, s-bahn, sunset limited, video, youtube,

    Flag Stops: Informed Decisionmaking (Or Lack Thereof)

    Friday, January 15, 2010

    Many reasons cited for car ownership drop, a way to show that conventional intercity trains actually do make money, Schwarzenegger’s missteps, and more.

  • The number of cars owned by Americans dropped by 4 million in 2009, even given the less-than-ideal state of alternative transportation. The recession and the “cash for clunkers” program contributed to the trend, but weren’t the only factors. “Increased urbanization, gas prices, traffic and congestion, automobile saturation and even concerns regarding climate change” were also cited in an Earth Policy Institute report. The benefits of less driving will grow as intra- and intercity rail, in particular, become more attractive.

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  • A privately-commissioned financial impact study finds that the proposed Northern Flyer train, which would connect Amtrak’s Heartland Flyer with the Southwest Chief by running between Oklahoma City and Newton, Kansas, would generate $3.20 in regional economic benefit for every $1.00 of capital and operations cost. The train’s backers are taking the laudable approach of quantifying all its external benefits in dollar terms and adding them to the overall calculus, producing a much truer reflection of its economic impact than a mere comparison of revenue from passenger fares to both capital and operating costs.

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  • An air-travel-weary young guest newspaper columnist from Eugene, Oregon, tries taking the train to Colorado. “When I fly, I tend to lose things: my bags, my wallet, my temper, my dignity, etc,” he writes. “Traveling with Amtrak is all about gains—friendships and experiences, mostly.” His trip would have been a lot more direct if the Pioneer was back in service.

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  • If you were the governor of a state facing a record budget gap and a worsening transportation problem compounded by a booming population, would you be quick to recommend cutting gas taxes that pay for public transportation? Well, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger wants to do just that [PDF]. Luckily, voters may get a chance to preserve transit funding in November.

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  • Amtrak is offering 100 bonus points (the equivalent of frequent flier miles) to current Amtrak Guest Rewards (AGR) members who are Facebook “fans” of the railroad—and 750 bonus points to non-AGR members who join AGR. Go to Amtrak’s Facebook page and scroll down for the link.

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  • LCL: CNN Tech shows how worldwide recognition of train’s lower environmental footprint is a key factor in the mode’s resurgence—particularly in China and Europe, but also in the US. * * * A new military complex in the Washington suburbs won’t be transit accessible—giving traffic planners headaches that could have been avoided with forethought. * * * A Yale history professor ponders how modernizing the US passenger rail network would enhance our global competitiveness.

    • —Malcolm Kenton

    Posted by Malcolm Kenton

    Tags: amtrak, automobiles, budget, california, car ownership, cars, congestion, energy, financial, green, passenger train, profitability, recession, traffic, train,

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