Hotline #187 - April 20, 2001

Transit ridership in the U.S. rose by 3.5% in 2000, according to the American Public Transportation Association. This is the fifth straight year of growth, and, significantly, the third straight year transit grew faster than highway use. The Federal Highway Administration reported that highway use grew by just 0.047% in 2000 (measured in vehicle-miles). All major modes of rail transit grew -- heavy rail (subways/metros) was up 7.6%, light rail was up 5.3%, commuter rail was up 5.2%. Some individual rail systems had great growth due to system expansions in 2000 (like the Los Angeles Metro and Dallas' Trinity Railway Express), but others without system expansion also grew (like Virginia Railway Express, 19.6%; Caltrain 14.2%; BART, 12.8%; Los Angeles Metrolink, 11.5%; Miami Tri-Rail, 10.0%; PATH, 9.6%; Washington Metro, 7.7%; New York subways, 7.6%; Philadelphia subways, 7.3%). Several systems are straining to meet the added demand.

Despite that good news, one item in President Bush's fiscal 2002 budget proposals released last week was a provision to decrease the federal share of funding for transit "new start" projects. While the ISTEA and TEA-21 laws put new transit projects on a more even playing field with highways by allowing an 80% match for both, President Bush would cut the federal share for transit new starts to 50% starting in 2004. The Administration says this would make money available to more projects and weed out "bad" ones, but it also could have the result of making highway projects more attractive to local and state officials than new transit projects. The Administration is not proposing a similar cut-back in the federal share for new highway projects.

Now would be a good time to write a general letter-to-the-editor to the publication of your choice (local or national) indicating your support for passenger rail and Amtrak. Jim Norton of the Alabama Association of Railroad Passengers has been urging passenger rail supporters to write such letters now, so they can call attention to Amtrak's 30th birthday (May 1, 2001). Newsweek might be one target -- they just ran a story on solving aviation gridlock that did not mention rail.

Congress will return from spring recess April 24. We are still looking for originating co-sponsors for a House version of the High Speed Rail Investment Act. Please be sure you have asked your Representative. For ways to contact them, see our web site.

The Empire Builder was annulled east of St. Paul starting April 13 due to high water on the route along the Mississippi River between there and La Crosse, Wis. This will continue until the water recedes and tracks can be inspected. Buses are provided between St. Paul and Chicago. Delays also were encountered in North Dakota due to high water in places and "frost heaves," mostly between Grand Forks and Devils Lake -- this could continue into May with possibility of detouring over the direct route between Fargo and Minot.

A derailment and collision involving two Norfolk Southern freight trains near Kendallville, Ind., April 18 disrupted Amtrak operations for a couple of days. Some trains were detoured over CSX between Hammond, Ind., and Deshler, O. (route of the Three Rivers), then north to Toledo. There were significant delays to these trains.

Governor Locke of Washington on April 18 signed a bill authorizing the state Department of Transportation to proceed with renovation and restoration of Seattle King Street Station, in conjunction with a non-profit corporation set up for that purpose. A temporary Amtrak station should be ready this summer, with the entire project expected to be completed by mid-2003.

Metro North has begun replacing its elderly catenary system from New Haven west to the New York state line, according to Railway Age magazine. A similar Metro North project in New York State several years ago allowed Amtrak trains to increase in speed from 70 to 90 mph from the state line west to New Rochelle. Increasing speeds on the much longer Connecticut section will allow noticeable improvement in New York-Boston travel times. Work will take up to ten years and cost $300 million.

The Illinois Department of Transportation has deactivated the grade-crossing arrestor nets it was testing in three locations. The Department determined that the nets were not reliable enough. They fell on several cars and activated at the wrong times, according to Associated Press.  Equipment had to be shut down multiple times and required about $5,000 in maintenance every month. The testing began in 1999 to see if the technology -- similar to those used on aircraft carriers -- would be helpful in making crossings safe for future high-speed train service. The test locations were at Chenoa, McLean, and Hartford, all on the Chicago-St. Louis route.

Denver's Regional Transportation District on April 17 approved a plan to buy Union Station and make it a transit hub. The RTD approved spending up to $60 million. Other agencies, such as the City of Denver, the Denver Regional Council of Governments, and Colorado DOT could contribute about half of that total. A final purchase price won't be available until the building and 18-acre site are appraised. Amtrak's daily California Zephyr and the Ski Train serve the building now; light rail is under construction and intercity and local bus service could be added.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police charged a teenaged boy with mischief endangering life in connection with the April 12 derailment of VIA Rail's Ocean at Stewiacke, N.S. Two other boys were arrested and released. Police believe a lock on a switch adjacent to the derailment site was either broken or removed just prior to the derailment, but likely after the train passed the last previous signal. Twenty-four people on the train were injured and a feed-store warehouse was destroyed.