Hotline #88 - May 28, 1999

A long-awaited Senate bill to give states the right to spend their flexible, federal transportation dollars on intercity passenger rail investments was introduced yesterday. The bill is S.1144, the "Surface Transportation Act of 1999." The bill also includes sections on the State Infrastructure Bank Program and a few other technical changes to TEA-21.

The bill was introduced by Sen. George Voinovich (R.-Ohio), chairman of the Environment and Public Works Transportation Subcommittee. Original co-sponsors are Chafee (R.-R.I.), Jeffords (R.-Vt.), Leahy (D.-Vt.), Moynihan (D.-N.Y.), Warner (R.-Va.), Hutchison (R.-Tex.), Reid (D.-Nev.), and Lautenberg (D.-N.J.). Please ask your Senator to co-sponsor S.1144.

Transportation funding bills also moved forward this week. So far, there is good news regarding Amtrak's request for $571 million for fiscal 2000, plus permission to spend these funds on maintenance-of-way and maintenance-of-equipment. That is all in the Senate funding bill that was approved yesterday by the full Senate Appropriations Committee. The bill could go to the floor in June.

The House Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee yesterday approved a bill that also gives Amtrak what it wants. The full committee could consider this bill as early as June 8. Urge your Representative to work against any amendment that would cut Amtrak funding, either at the committee level or on the House floor. Amtrak's funding request is already $38 million below the current-year level.

The Illinois legislature on May 21 approved Governor Ryan's "Illinois FIRST" infrastructure bill, including $250 million in rail programs.

A two-year budget bill was signed by the governor of Washington yesterday. It includes continued funding for existing Cascadia service, funding for a second train to Vancouver, B.C., $55 million in other track and safety improvements in the Cascadia corridor, authorization to use federal funding for the Seattle King Street Station renovation, a contribution towards a new equipment maintenance facility in Seattle for Amtrak and commuter trains, and additional Talgo coaches to provide more capacity on the Cascadia service.

Amtrak will start a shuttle service between its station in suburban Richmond, Va., and downtown, on June 1. The shuttle will meet four trains a day in each direction. They will stop at the Marriott and Omni hotels, and at Virginia Commonwealth University. The shuttle will cost $4 and can be booked with the rest of the train ticket. This is good news for passengers, as Virginia train ridership keeps rising, and train service to downtown Richmond at Main Street Station is still in the future.

The transit agency in South Bend, Ind., has received almost $9 million in federal and state funding to move the Amtrak stop back downtown, into an intermodal facility.

The Fresno County Board of Supervisors this week rejected bids for a new Amtrak station, citing cost overruns and sentiment to revive plans for a downtown track consolidation.

A project to put in a stop at Paradise, Pa., on the Keystone Corridor, is moving forward with the arrival of a $2 million grant. The stop would be served by Amtrak, local buses, and the historic Strasburg Railroad, which would have to build a quarter-mile extension to reach the site. Construction should start a year from now.

Transportation Secretary Rodney Slater announced on May 24 that $12 million in maglev study money would be divided up between several cities, including Baltimore, Pittsburgh, and Atlanta. Slater recommended seven projects for further study, of which one is supposed to be selected next year for development and construction. TEA-21 provided a total of $60 million in guaranteed funds for maglev.