Hotline #14 - December 26, 1997

A New York Times editorial on December 22 entitled "Amtrak's Survival Wager" began, "Thomas Downs' abrupt retirement as chairman and chief executive of Amtrak this month is a worrisome sign that the national passenger rail system is still mired in difficulties, despite a $2.3-billion rescue package recently signed into law in Washington." We think it is a worrisome sign about what the Amtrak board is thinking. If you have a suggestion about someone that should be considered to lead Amtrak, please send it to NARP.

The Times editorial suggests the long-distance trains lose money even with the mail and express initiatives, but that the coastal units -- both east and west -- show great promise because they serve areas with sufficient population density. The editorial urged governors and mayors to "help persuade the Administration and Congress to avoid partisan bickering that could stall appointment of a new board."

The Chicago Tribune ran an opinion column on December 23 by Joseph Vranich. In his latest anti-Amtrak diatribe, he expresses hope that Congress might rescind at least the second half of Amtrak's $2.3 billion, the part scheduled to go to the railroad in early 1999.

The next day, December 24, the Associated Press said, "After five hours stuck in a motionless airplane that lacked water and working toilets, Joseph Vranich probably kicked himself for not taking the train." The Milwaukee airport was unprepared for seven flights diverted there from O'Hare Airport because of heavy snow. Vranich was one of about 200 passengers on United flight 1536. AP said the plan landed by 5:30 pm; Vranich's notes showed that at 10:20 pm the pilot told passengers that they could leave on a ladder, but 41 minutes later it was reported that there was no one around to operate the necessary equipment. One passenger was taken off after suffering a heart attack. AP also said about 250 passengers were stranded overnight at O'Hare because of cancelled flights.

Southwest delayed or cancelled 41 flights the same day because 90 attendants called in sick, rather than the normal 20. Management and union officials denied this was a protest. Southwest said the union had just signed a contract making Southwest's attendants the highest paid to fly on 737's anywhere.

The Los Angeles Daily News reported that Christmas Eve traffic was a nightmare. The Washington Post's front page today highlights congestion on Rockville Pike in suburban Maryland, with a photo of Christmas Eve traffic approaching gridlock. And controversy brews in New York, where Mayor Giuliani has a plan to forbid pedestrians from crossing north-south avenues at ten intersections at 49th and 50th Streets in Midtown Manhattan.

Congratulations to the Delaware Valley Association of Railroad Passengers and Matthew Mitchell, whose web site gets a special sidebar in the "Fast Forward" column of today's Washington Post Weekend Section. Writer Rob Pegararo says Amtrak's web site is pretty, but "just looking up train schedules takes too many clicks and too much time waiting for those images to load. You'll save time by going to the excellent, volunteer-run site put together by the Delaware Valley Association of Railroad Passengers, which lists schedules for Amtrak in a simple, concise and unfashionably browser-tolerant listing, just like what you'd get in an old-fashioned brochure. How quaint! And how effective! Even if you still have to muddle through Amtrak's site to get fares."