Hotline #963 - January 3, 1997

We understand that the new chairman of the Senate Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee will be announced next week. As expected, it will be Richard Shelby (R.-Ala.).

The libertarian Cato Institute released a new attack on Amtrak last month. It's called, "Amtrak at Twenty-Five: End of the Line for Taxpayer Subsidies, Policy Analysis number 266." The report falsely claims "Amtrak is the only intercity mode that requires net public subsidies." It draws an inept parallel between Amtrak trains that provide basic transportation service, and private, high-fare tourist trains in Canada. NARP answered an anti-Amtrak editorial in the December 30 Boston Herald that was based on the Cato report. Please share with us other such editorials as they appear.

This reinforces the need to start contacting legislators -- especially new ones. They need to hear about the importance of maintaining and improving nationwide passenger train service. Letters to the editor and radio talk shows are good ways to involve more people.

Amtrak service in much of the West is seriously disrupted, due to the massive and persistent storms and flooding. A summary of service problems follows; if you are traveling in these areas in the next several days, contact Amtrak before leaving:

• The California Zephyr has not been running west of Salt Lake City, with alternate transportation provided only between Salt Lake City and Reno. Amtrak says the westbound train of January 5 and eastbound train of January 6 should run the entire route.
• The Coast Starlight is annulled north of Oakland at least until January 12, and perhaps as long as a month. Alternate transportation is provided between Seattle and Eugene, but not between Eugene and Oakland.
• Amtrak plans to run buses instead of the Mount Baker International, Mount Adams, and Cascadia through January 5, all of which serve parts of the Eugene-Vancouver corridor.
• Currently, the Empire Builder is annulled west of Havre, Mont., with alternate transportation provided between Havre and Whitefish -- but not between Whitefish and the west. However, the January 4 train from Chicago will run all the way to Whitefish, with no alternate transportation provided west of there. The eastbound train of January 5 will originate in Whitefish on January 6.
• The Pioneer is running as far west as Portland, with alternate transportation provided to Seattle. Empire Builder passengers to and from the Pacific Northwest are encouraged to use the Pioneer instead, if possible.

Damage is particularly extensive on the Coast Starlight route north of Sacramento. Between Seattle and Portland, it was reported yesterday that there were 20 miles of slow orders at 25 mph, with ten-hour travel times for freight trains. Even at Emeryville, Cal., where passengers board buses for San Francisco, water was over the rails on the evening of January 1. That same night, passengers at Martinez transferring to buses had to wade more than a block through shin-deep water.

Due to track work, Crescent passengers will be bussed between Birmingham and New Orleans between January 6 and 19. The Gulf Coast Limited was annulled for part of December due to bridge work, and Sunset Limited passengers were bussed between New Orleans and Mobile. There will be a two-for-one ticket deal for the Gulf Coast Limited in January to help restore ridership.

Aviation ticket taxes expired on December 31, for the second time in a year. The federal government failed to collect the tax from airline users for most of 1996, draining $4 billion from the Aviation Trust Fund.