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The Federal Railroad Administration is currently managing a comprehensive planning effort to define, evaluate and prioritize future levels of investment in the Northeast Corridor (NEC) through 2040.

This effort, launched in February 2012 and called NEC FUTURE, will produce a Service Development Plan that articulates the overall scope, alternatives and approach for proposed improvements, and a Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement that evaluates and identifies ways to address broad, corridor-wide environmental impacts due to these improvements.

This process is a federally-required step before major construction to overhaul the corridor’s aging, unreliable, and congested infrastructure can begin.

 View the FRA’s NEC FUTURE Preliminary Alternatives Report.

 

The Obama Administration yesterday released its budget request for fiscal year 2014 and the President has once again put forth a plan for transforming and expanding train service in the United States.

The president is requesting $40 billion in passenger rail investment over the next five years, allocating $6.6 billion to the Federal Rail Administration for fiscal 2014, with increasing amounts each subsequent year through 2019.

“A well-functioning transportation system is critical to America’s economic future. Whether it is by road, transit, air, rail, pipeline, or waterway, Americans rely on our transportation system to move people and goods safely, facilitate commerce, attract and retain businesses, and support jobs,” the administration said in the budget request.

The request for $40 billion over five will fund the development of high-speed rail and other passenger rail programs as part of an integrated national transportation strategy.

This system will provide 80 percent of Americans with convenient access to a passenger rail system, featuring high-speed service, within 25 years.

The proposal also benefits freight rail and significantly restructures Federal support for Amtrak, to increase transparency, accountability, and performance.

The request will be a boost for Amtrak, coming a day before the House Committee on Transportation holds a hearing on the railroad’s FY 2014 budget.

The hearing, Amtrak’s Fiscal Year 2014 Budget: The Starting Point for Reauthorization [which will be streamed live], will address Amtrak’s funding needs, as well as the coming rail reauthorization (the current law will expire at the end of this September).

Amtrak announced April 9 it had set a new ridership record during the first half of this fiscal year, and will be looking to translate its steady increase in popularity into an increase its funding for badly needed equipment purchases and infrastructure upgrades. 



Passage of a reauthorization bill this year is uncertain, but the appropriations committees will determine how much federal funding each program gets.

Secretary LaHood is scheduled to appear before the House Appropriations transportation subcommittee on April 16.

President Obama’s $6.6 billion request breaks down in the following ways:

• $2.7 billion for “Current Passenger Rail Service,” including $800 million for Amtrak’s long-distance routes, $300 million for state corridors, $675 million for the Northeast Corridor and $925 million for “national assets” (defined as positive train control for passenger rail, rail stations, and “backbone rail facilities).”

• $3.7 billion for “Rail Service Improvement Program.” The budget request defines goals for the program as “Creating or improving passenger corridors, mitigating congestion bottlenecks in the rail system, improving intermodal freight rail capacity and comprehensive future planning.”

President Obama has put forth similar proposals in the past, and the biggest obstacle to implementing the program remains identifying new sources of funding.

The Administration identifies the “peace dividend” — money saved from drawing down the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq — as a major source of funding. However, House Republicans have rejected this proposal in its previous iterations. 



The Administration is proposing that rail funding become part of the Highway Trust Fund (it would be repurposed into a “Transportation Trust Fund”). This would eliminate Amtrak’s dependence on the annual appropriations cycle, moving it a grant structure similar to highways and transit.

Amtrak LogoWASHINGTON — Amtrak ridership increased in the first half of fiscal year 2013 (Oct. 2012 – March 2013) and March set a record as the single best month ever in the history of America’s Railroad®. In addition, October, December, and January each set individual monthly records.

Rebounding strongly from service disruptions caused by Superstorm Sandy and other severe weather, Amtrak ridership grew 0.9 percent in the first six months of fiscal year 2013 as compared to the same period the prior year. In all, 26 of 45 routes posted ridership increases and Amtrak expects to end the fiscal year at or above last year’s record of 31.2 million passengers.

“The continued ridership growth on routes across the country reinforces the need for dedicated, multi-year federal operating and capital funding to support existing intercity passenger rail services and the development of new ones,” said Amtrak President and CEO Joe Boardman.

Northeast Corridor ridership, which took a significant hit from Superstorm Sandy, is seeing a solid recovery and is predicted to show gains for the full fiscal year, despite being down 1.2 percent for this six-month period. Ridership on state-supported and other short distance routes is up 2.7 percent and long-distance ridership grew 0.5 percent.

Routes with notable ridership growth in the first six months of fiscal year 2013 include: Palmetto (+10.5 percent), Coast Starlight (+10 percent), Illini/Saluki (+9.8 percent), San Joaquin (+8.9 percent), Piedmont (+8.6 percent), Wolverine (+8.2 percent), Vermonter (+6.7 percent), Carolinian (+6.3 percent), Keystone Service (+5.2 percent), Springfield Shuttles (+5.2 percent), Downeaster (+4.8 percent), Pacific Surfliner (+4.3 percent), and Pennsylvanian (+4.3 percent).

Amtrak LogoA public opinion survey done for the United Transportation Union found strong support for Amtrak in three conservative, Republican-dominated districts where service exists. Less than a quarter of respondents favored eliminating Amtrak funding.

The survey focused on three districts in Illinois, Missouri, and North Dakota. Even in these traditionally conservative districts – all currently represented by Republicans in the House of Representatives – 65 percent said that Amtrak funding “should continue at current levels or increase” when told eliminating federal assistance would lead to elimination of the service, with only 21 percent of respondents saying they believe funding for Amtrak should be eliminated.

Read the complete article at National Association of Railroad Passengers.

 

The following message was sent to the UTU National Legislative Office from Federal Railroad Administrator Joe Szabo:

Whenever one is discussing an ambitious, long-term program, like our high speed and intercity passenger rail program, it is helpful to remind ourselves – and others – about the original vision we committed to in 2009.

Since the very beginning, we have been executing a clearly laid out plan for a passenger rail network that includes high-speed trains, upgraded regional service, and improved connections for emerging markets. All three are interdependent and fundamental components of passenger rail operations in countries around the globe where high speed rail service is successful. This vision was announced by the president when we released our April 2009 strategic plan Vision for High Speed Rail in America. 

I often make the analogy to our modern highway system. In the same way you would not take an interstate highway directly to your neighborhood, one would not use a high speed train for every passenger rail trip. Our interstate system works because we have a robust network of state, county, and local roads that feed into the Interstate system. This same tiered-service concept applies to passenger rail.

With investments focused extensively in five mega-regions, we are moving forward with 152 passenger rail projects in 32 states and the District of Columbia. Nearly 50 percent of our investments are producing world-class high speed rail, some 45 percent higher-quality regional service, and the balance higher-performing feeder service. All improve the customer experience by reducing trip times, improving reliability, adding additional frequencies, or improving passenger amenities, and help build a high-performing passenger rail network. And we are doing all of this while preserving or enhancing our thriving freight rail network.

Four years ago we made a promise to deliver on a vision for a more comprehensive passenger rail network and we’re keeping that promise. By executing good project fundamentals, with the leadership of our state partners, we’ll continue to bring projects in on time and budget and advance this next generation of transportation.

WASHINGTON – On Saturday, May 11, 2013, Amtrak will join communities across America to celebrate the importance of trains to their town at the sixth annual National Train Day.

More than 200 communities are expected to host events at local train stations, railroad museums and other locations commemorating this year’s theme “trains matter.”

“National Train Day invites communities big and small to share the importance of trains as a vital transportation option and engine of economic development and employment,” said Amtrak Chief Marketing & Sales Officer Matt Hardison.

In addition to events in Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Chicago and Los Angeles, Amtrak is expanding its efforts to support events in many local markets across the country served by America’s Railroad®. Event offerings will vary to include train equipment displays, family-friendly activities and local dignitaries.

Details on National Train Day events and information on how to host a National Train Day event is available at NationalTrainDay.com. Additional events and information will be added to the website frequently. In addition, rail passengers and enthusiasts are invited to share why trains matter to them via Facebook or @natltrainday.

The following rebuttal from the National Association of Railroad Passengers is in response to a CNN report by Anderson Cooper critical of Amtrak and high speed rail funding:

“So is Anderson Cooper still a real journalist? He headlines a daily talk show, and was swimming with crocodiles on last Sunday’s 60 Minutes. Perhaps Cooper has completely transitioned into the role of “television personality.”

“Honestly, that’s the most generous conclusion we can come up with. Because after the fact-light, context-free piece showcased on Anderson Cooper 360 last week, we have to say: if Cooper still considers himself a reporter, he is doing a very bad job of it.

“On Cooper’s show, reporter Drew Griffin attacked the High Speed & Intercity Passenger Rail (HSIPR) Program as a boondoggle, contrasting the expectation of 220 mph trains that run in Europe and Asia with the projects funded in the U.S. by HSIPR.

“Griffin points to the federally funded improvements to the Pacific Northwest’s Cascades service (Portland, Oregon – Seattle, Washington – Vancouver, British Columbia) as an example of everything that’s wrong with the HSIPR program. In his “analysis,” Griffin states that $800 million was spent to bring about a ten-minute reduction in trip time.

“But that’s not true.

“Yes, there was a ten-minute reduction in trip time. However, the $800 million also paid for infrastructure upgrades that push on time performance above 88 percent and added two additional daily round trips between Portland and Seattle. While Paula Hammond, former head of the Washington State Department of Transportation, briefly mentions more roundtrips on camera, it’s never even acknowledged by Griffin. That’s right: the money will go to purchasing a new train set and new locomotives, increasing daily roundtrips from four to six, and Anderson Cooper didn’t even mention it! (Not incidentally, these train sets are being built in the U.S. by American workers. This investment is leading to a revival in U.S. manufacturing of rail equipment.)

“Griffin also repeatedly states that there’s nothing to show for the $12 billion spent on high speed rail. In addition to being disrespectful to communities that have directly benefited from the many improvements to conventional speed train service (such as: Illinois, Vermont, Michigan, the entire Northeast Corridor, and so on), it’s also flat out wrong, because only 15 percent of the $12 billion has been spent so far.

“There are many reasons for this. As a result of the U.S. investing so little in passenger rail over the past 50 years, a lot of the HSIPR program had to be built from the ground up, a process that has taken time. The projects have also been the victim of political squabbling, with Republican governors killing rail expansion projects – conventional and high speed – in Wisconsin, Ohio, and Florida. (In a twist of fate, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker reversed course and applied for a HSIPR rail grant in the next round of applications, and Florida Gov. Rick Scott is supporting All Aboard Florida’s Miami-Orlando train, a service which would have benefited immensely from the Orlando-Tampa rail corridor Scott killed).

“California’s San Francisco-Los Angeles high speed train – which will travel at speeds of more than 200 mph – is facing many of these political hurdles. But it is moving forward in spite of the political opposition, with construction scheduled to start this very summer. Construction will also ramp up on HSIPR projects in the Midwest and Northeast, creating good jobs for the U.S. construction workers, an industry which is still lagging behind in the recovery. New orders for train equipment will continue to benefit the U.S. manufacturing sector.

“Griffin and Cooper’s main objection seems to be the gulf between what they imagined when President Obama talked about high speed trains, and the reality of what $12 billion can buy. Their main failing, then, is understanding that infrastructure – whether it be rails or roads, bridges or sewers – is expensive. Unfortunately, with an estimated $3.6 trillion in investment needed in the U.S. between now and 2020, there are no $12 billion silver bullets.

“This country is still pursuing the 200 mph train service President Obama spoke of – in the Northeast Corridor and in California. But unless we start investing on levels commensurate with what the Chinese have spent on their high speed rail network – $451 billion to $602 billion between 2011 and 2015 alone – the rest of the country will progress in increments of 10 minute reductions here, and an additional frequency there.

“But if you ask a potential Cascades passenger, someone who drives on Interstate 5, where bumper-to-bumper traffic can often stretch 60 miles south of Seattle, past Tacoma to the state capital of Olympia, 10 minutes and another frequency would be enough.”

Amtrak, the U.S. intercity passenger railroad supported by taxpayers, asked Congress to more than double its capital budget so it can buy more trains and improve infrastructure.

Amtrak, in a letter today to Vice President Joe Biden and House Speaker John Boehner, asked for $2.1 billion in U.S. funds for its capital budget and $212 million for debt service for the 2014 fiscal year. In the 2013 fiscal year, Amtrak is receiving $905 million for those expenses.

Read the complete story at Bloomberg News. 

The National Association of Railroad Passengers, the U.S. High Speed Rail Association, Californians for High Speed Rail, and the Midwest High Speed Rail Association are urging Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood to support XpressWest’s creation of a Los Angeles to Las Vegas high-speed rail line.

XpressWest currently has loan application pending with the Federal Railroad Administration through the Railroad Rehabilitation & Improvement Financing program.

Congress established the RRIF loan program in 1998 to help support development of the U.S. rail system. Under the RRIF program, the Administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) is authorized to provide direct loans and loan guarantees out of a $35 billion pool of revolving credit to help rail projects.

In a letter to LaHood, the four organizations cited the following factors in seeking his support:

•Los Angeles to Las Vegas is the second busiest end-point pair in the United States, trailing only Los Angeles to San Diego. The completion of XpressWest will be a critical step toward meeting the president’s goal of connecting 80 percent of the American public to modern intercity passenger trains within 25 years.

•XpressWest will provide a convenient, energy-efficient alternative to the heavily traveled Interstate-15, a congested and dangerous highway. Mid-desert traffic back-ups are fairly common. The initial 185-mile segment would have the capacity to divert more than 2 million annual automobile trips, saving an estimated 440,000 barrels of oil each year. The train would also provide a safer travel alternative: the Las Vegas to Los Angeles segment of Interstate 15 has been found to be one of the most dangerous highways in America, and a 2010 study found that 1,069 people died in 834 automobile accidents on the road over a 15 year period.

•It will help speed up and enhance the California high speed rail project with extensions to Palmdale (70 miles from Los Angeles; currently served by Metrolink commuter trains) where the two systems will seamlessly integrate, significantly increasing ridership on both systems, and increasing private sector interest in the California system to help fund further extensions.

•It will expand the market for American high-speed rail manufacturing.

•It is consistent with the desire of Americans for good train travel. This is reflected in the fact that Amtrak has set ridership records in nine of the last 10 years. Moreover, as a recent Brookings Institution report noted, Amtrak ridership from 1997 to 2012 at 55 percent grew faster than domestic aviation ridership (20 percent), highway vehicle-miles traveled (16.5 percent), U.S. population (17 percent) and real gross domestic product (37 percent).

“XpressWest is well suited for this program. This project is ready to go today, having already gained environmental clearance and secured the needed rights-of-way. Private investors have already assembled $1.5 billion in funds to support the project.

“With leadership from the private sector, we can be confident the project will be delivered quickly and efficiently, and managed with strong business practices. Because the nation’s high-speed rail network will be created through public-private partnership, this project offers the ideal model starter project to help move the nation’s new rail program forward,” the organizations’ leadership said.

After more than two years of negotiations, three UTU-SMART general committees representing some 2,300 Amtrak members have reached a deal with the passenger carrier on a new contract.

Amtrak LogoGeneral Chairpersons Bill Beebe, Robert Keeley and Dirk Sampson represent Amtrak conductors, assistant conductors, yardmasters and dining car stewards.

The parties first began negotiations in 2010 and were initially unable to resolve their differences on the terms and conditions of a new contract. After a number of sessions, the services of the National Mediation Board were requested and a Federal mediator was assigned.

UTU-SMART Assistant President John Previsich, who assisted in the negotiations, said that, although the progress remained slow and difficult, the mediator was ultimately successful in moving the parties forward to a satisfactory conclusion.

The tentative agreements must now be ratified by affected members under provisions of the UTU (SMART Transportation Division) Constitution. Ballots are going out by mail and the tentative deadline for the return of ballots is April 10.

The proposed agreements follow the pattern of pay increases and health & welfare modifications reached by other organizations in earlier settlements. The increases are effective beginning back to 2010 and, as a result, employees covered by the new agreements will receive a significant amount of back pay once the contract is ratified, Previsich said.

“In addition, the parties were successful in resolving the difficult issue of financial recognition for the increased obligations and rule modifications that are required by Federal certification of conductors,” Previsich said.

General Chairpersons Beebe, Keeley and Sampson thanked Previsich for his assistance during the negotiations and also pointed to the valuable contributions and perseverance of Vice General Chairpersons Gary Hopson, Charlie Yura and Charles Fowler.

“I commend Chairpersons Keeley, Sampson and Beebe for the professionalism and dedication to the membership exhibited during this very difficult round of negotiations,” Previsich said. “Their commitment, along with the knowledge and contributions of the vice general chairpersons, resulted in tentative agreements that stand as testimony to the value of working together for the benefit of the men and women who we represent.”