Hotline #26 - March 20, 1998

In the wake of the Senate having passed its ISTEA bill March 12, the House is now ready to move. The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee is planning to approve its bill, H.R.2400, on March 24. Chairman Bud Shuster (R.-Pa.) plans to take it to the floor the week of March 30 for approval by the time Congress takes its spring recess, April 2.

House leaders have approved a plan that would increase ISTEA spending, along the lines of what the Senate did with their bill, S.1173. However, the House would add more money to highways than the Senate bill did, and less money to transit. In both bills, budget offsets to pay for the funding increases have not been fully identified, putting the question of what programs to cut to pay for the increases off into the future.

Flexibility for states to use federal transportation funds on intercity passenger trains is not in the House bill, though it is in the Senate bill. It is not likely to be added to the House bill, given Chairman Shuster's general aversion to spending highway money on passenger trains. That shifts the focus on flexibility to the reconciliation conference committee that will come after spring break.

Therefore, as we said last week, tell your Senators to fight to keep flexibility in the final bill, and tell your Representative that the Senate language on flexibility should be kept in the final bill.

NARP will also urge conferees to preserve the Senate bill's funds for grade crossing work on high-speed corridors, and to preserve the Senate bill's tax language that improves the equity between employer-provided parking and transit benefits.

The pro-environment Surface Transportation Policy Project is concerned about Congress' intention to increase highway spending significantly, but believes that if states spend more of the increase on repairing existing roads, and less on new roads, the situation won't be so bad. But since building new roads is a great temptation for both politicians and state DOT engineers, there is legitimate reason to fear the worst. Meanwhile, oil prices are at historic lows, encouraging more and more driving.

The Senate Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee will have a hearing on the future of Amtrak on March 24. No witness list has been released yet, but there are reports that the witnesses have been asked to talk about "alternatives" to Amtrak.

Because of heavy bridge work in southeast Connecticut, NortheastDirect service will be disrupted today, and March 21 and 22, between New Haven and Boston. Expect some bussing if you are traveling in that direction those days.

Tim Gillespie, the Amtrak vice president of government affairs, is leaving Amtrak at the end of the month. Gillespie has been in that position for many years and is well thought of by passengers, legislators, and other lobbyists alike.

The president of the Association of American Railroads, M. B. Oglesby, is departing suddenly, after less than nine months on the job.

The Glenville Super Steel company of Schenectady has been awarded a $20 million contract by the New York State DOT to rebuild two Amtrak turboliners, according to the Albany Times-Union. This will be done apparently in a manner similar to the one that was rebuilt a few years ago for 125-mph service.

NARP Region 8 meets at Seattle tomorrow, and Region 5 meets at DeLand, Fla., with NARP President John R. Martin speaking. On March 28, Region 10 meets at Council Bluffs, Ia., again with NARP President John R. Martin, and Region 1 meets at Boston with NARP Executive Director Ross Capon. The last meeting of the season is Region 3 at Lancaster, Pa., on April 4.