Hotline #979 - April 25, 1997

Rep. Michael Castle (R.-Del.) introduced the House version of the Amtrak gas-tax half-cent bill yesterday. Its number is H.R.1437.

Amtrak President Tom Downs addressed the NARP board of directors meeting in Rockville, Md., today. He said that while the Senate looks more optimistic on the half cent, there is a "mountain to climb in the House." He said we need 100 co-sponsors for H.R.1437 within 45 days for it to be viable. So far, H.R.1437 has 12 co-sponsors.

Please call and write your Representative right away, and ask him or her to be a co-sponsor of H.R.1437, the House version of the Amtrak half-cent.

The Senate Finance Committee had a very favorable hearing on the Senate's half-cent bill, S.436, on April 23. Both the Chairman and Ranking Member, Senators Roth (R.-Del.) and Moynihan (D.-N.Y.), made very clear that it is "make-or-break time" for Amtrak, and that the half cent must be approved for there to be an Amtrak in coming years. The General Accounting Office witness, Phyllis Scheinberg, said, "Policy makers need to decide on Amtrak's future. If Amtrak is to be as it is currently set up, it needs significant capital." NARP Director Doras Briggs stole the show by explaining what Amtrak service means to senior citizens.

The Texas House passed the special appropriations bill with the Texas Eagle loan money in it on April 22, and Governor Bush has signed it. However, the House has yet to pass the enabling legislation related to the Eagle loan.

Amtrak Northeast President George Warrington told the NARP board yesterday that by mid-summer, the Night Owl will be extended to Richmond and Newport News with Viewliner sleeping cars on it.

Three women were honored for their passenger-rail related work at the NARP board's annual reception in Washington Union Station last night. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R.-Tex.) received the George Falcon Golden Spike Award for her on-going work on saving the Texas Eagle and toward a healthy national Amtrak system. Federal Railroad Administrator Jolene Molitoris received the Dr. Gary Burch Memorial Safety Award for her work since the 1996 Silver Spring accident to improve overall passenger safety. And NARP Membership Director Jane Colgrove got a special Golden Spike Award marking her ten years of service in the NARP office.

The Empire Builder continues to be rerouted between Fargo and Minot, N.Dak., due to flooding, with no replacement for missed stops. The Lake Shore Limited and Capitol Limited have had various disruptions this week caused by freight derailments at Sandusky, O., and Cumberland, Md.

A third airport for Chicago is a bad idea that just won't die, apparently. A new, private coalition of boosters has formed, according to the Journal of Commerce, to promote an airport at Peotone, Ill., 35 miles south of Chicago. The Illinois Department of Transportation is still squarely behind the project, but fortunately it is opposed by the City of Chicago and the airlines.

The airport boosters are citing a recent study by the Federal Aviation Administration on congestion at O'Hare Airport. A truly intermodal department of transportation would give serious consideration to passenger rail corridors to alleviate that congestion, rather than just build more airports. We'll see what the Slater DOT does.