Hotline #131 - March 24, 2000

S.1900, the High Speed Rail Investment Act, has two new co-sponsors -- John Warner (R.-Va.) and Joseph Lieberman (D.-Conn.), bringing to 36 the number of Senators whose names are on the bill. H.R.3700 has 30 Representatives on it.

The new Acela Regional trains are doing very well, according to a March 14 Amtrak release. It said that February ridership on the two all-electric Washington-Boston round-trips was between 45% and 65% above that of the February 1999 ridership of NortheastDirect trains that the new trains replaced. On-time performance was 85%, though it was consistently over 90% later in the month. Total New England ridership was up almost 7%, boosted in part by the new trains and the new Route 128 station outside Boston.

As for the high-speed Acela Express train-sets, Amtrak told a House panel on March 15 that the manufacturing consortium was advising that the first service could be in July.

Business Class on NortheastDirect trains will have some amenities restored effective today. Complimentary newspapers and non-alcoholic beverages will be restored, matching what is done on the two existing Acela Regional round-trips.

The world's first use of a communications-based train control system to control trains in revenue service will be inaugurated March 27 on the Amtrak-owned segment of the Chicago-Detroit line. For now, the speed limit remains 79 mph, but this system eventually will support 110-mph service.

Amtrak has announced it will make up to 1,500 extra seats available in the Northeast if there is a US Airways strike on March 25. Also, seats have been added to the Silver Palm, Carolinian, Crescent, and Lake Shore Limited through April 4 (to be extended if strike-induced demand warrants). Strike or not, Amtrak has been getting great, free publicity as the media repeats US Airways' statement that its tickets will be honored "by major airlines and Amtrak."

The Georgia Senate approved a bill March 20 that would prioritize 18 proposed passenger rail projects. The House passed a similar bill last month. Some in the Georgia DOT expressed concerns at that time, pointing out that a delay to any given project would permanently stall projects lower down on the list. In the final hours of the 2000 session of the Georgia General Assembly, the bill has been through a reconciliation process. It now identifies the 18 corridors without prioritizing them. The two corridors getting the most initial attention are Athens-Atlanta and Macon-Griffin-Atlanta.

The Kingdome in Seattle will be demolished March 26, in the morning. Because it will happen so close to Amtrak's King St. Station, there will be a disruption in train service around the time of the implosion. Southbound trains 751 (for Portland) and 11 (Coast Starlight) will originate in Tacoma. Northbound train 760 (for Vancouver) will originate in Edmonds. Westbound train 7 (Empire Builder) will terminate in Edmonds. Amtrak will provide shuttle buses to and from the Seattle Greyhound station (811 Stewart St.) to connect with these trains at Tacoma and Edmonds. The situation should be back to normal by noon.

Amtrak and Tri-Rail had to terminate several trains in Hollywood, Fla., on March 21 after a CSX derailment between there and Miami blocked the line. The derailment happened late on March 20 and spilled flammable, undiluted hydrogen peroxide. Clean-up attempts meant closing nearby I-95 as well.

The Surface Transportation Board announced a 15-month railroad-merger moratorium on March 17. This was discussed at a Senate subcommittee hearing March 23. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R.-Tex.) said she did not think Congress would be content to simply renew funding of the STB this year without changes to its authority. She said, "Congress must tackle the competitive issues that have resulted from consolidation when we reauthorize the STB. If Congress had adopted the standard to assure competition, the board may not have had to invoke a moratorium."

Reuters said that Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D.-W.Va.) and Byron Dorgan (D.-N.Dak.) also spoke in favor of legislation to bring back competition, which railroads have lobbied heavily against. Again quoting Reuters -- "Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott said he was cautious about rushing into legislative solutions. He supported the moratorium, but said he was confident the current service problems would eventually be overcome. 'I certainly don't believe that we need to permanently end mergers.' ... During the 15 months, the STB will develop new merger rules. The board expects to issue a notice of proposed rulemaking by April 6." STB Chair Linda Morgan said of the moratorium, "The decision is quite clear and speaks for itself and I am quite proud of it."

Some Michigan state legislators want to increase the amount of funding available for the International, so that Amtrak won't reroute the train away from Lansing and Flint. Amtrak announced on February 28 that the train would run instead through Ann Arbor and Dearborn, where Amtrak believes it will have lower operating losses. Amtrak's operating contract with Michigan DOT expired March 31, 1999. Amtrak says it needs $4.7 million to run the train on the current route. The current draft budget includes $2 million, though a couple representatives are trying to increase that to $3 million. The law requires Amtrak to give six months' notice before discontinuing a state-supported train.