Hotline #838 - August 12, 1994

The House is expected to vote on H.R.4867, the new high-speed rail bill, on August 16. But it is unlikely that the Senate Commerce subcommittee will mark up S.2002, the Amtrak reauthorization, until after Labor Day. Commerce was supposed to approve it yesterday, but delayed it at the last minute. As a result, Senator Lautenberg put a hold on a vote on high-speed rail, though there was a chance that it would go through anyway this afternoon.

After Labor Day is also when House-Senate conferees on the transportation appropriations bill will meet and when the Amtrak authorization will go to the House floor. A Barton amendment to eliminate labor protection is still possible then. If passed, it will put all long-distance trains into great jeopardy. Representative Walker (R.-Pa.) has introduced a bill to force Amtrak to maintain highway bridges over Amtrak-owned lines. Walker may offer this as an amendment to the Amtrak authorization.

NARP wrote to Federal Railroad Administrator Jolene Molitoris to follow up on a meeting with her last week and to comment on H.R.4867, the high-speed rail bill. NARP asked her to make sure new legislation produces tangible service improvements quickly. The letter cites examples of states ready to proceed with improvements now. These states would be greatly aided by a federal match program that included construction work.

President Clinton formally nominated Delaware Gov. Tom Carper (D.) to the four-year governor slot on the Amtrak Board, to replace Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson (R.). Carper will have to appear before the Senate Commerce Committee and then be confirmed by the full Senate. There is some doubt in Delaware whether the state constitution allows the governor to also serve in a federal position like the Amtrak board. The state supreme court will make a ruling next month. This leaves only one vacancy on the Amtrak board, the business-interest slot. We still hear that the President will nominate Celeste Pinto McLain for that.

The Soo Line strike now enters its fifth week, with no end in sight. This is the longest rail strike in nearly 20 years. No formal talks have been held since July 25 and none are scheduled now.

Amtrak President Tom Downs and Rep. Al Swift (D.-Wash.) will be aboard a special inspection train between Seattle and Vancouver on August 16.

The rear car of Amtrak's northbound Night Owl derailed August 10 in the morning in a Metro North interlocking near New Haven station. No one was injured. The derailed car was a mail car of a different series than the one that derailed on the Lake Shore Limited last week. The car derailed at 10 mph and the interlocking was already though to be in poor condition.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has released a report that says that the safety benefits touted by supporters of "intelligent vehicles" do not live up to expectations.

China has announced plans to construct an ambitious rail and highway bridge-tunnel across the Bohai Straits. This would cut 620 miles off the trip between northeastern and eastern China, bypassing the entire Beijing area. The $10 billion link would be 83 miles long, 36 miles in underwater tunnels, making it the longest underwater rail tunnel in the world. Currently, the longest underwater rail tunnel is the Seikan tunnel in Japan. It is not known how China will meet the challenge of incorporating trucks and cars into a tunnel of that length or how it can justify the project when so many mainland rail transport needs go unmet.