Happening Now

FY24 High-Speed Rail Appropriations

Members of the U.S. House that are willing to endorse the bipartisan FY24 High-Speed Rail appropriations request, please email Katie Donahue (Moulton) at [email protected] by COB of Wednesday, Mach 29th.
Senate offices can sign on via Quill; by COB of Wednesday, Mach 29th.

This letter to Senate and House THUD Subcommittees requests $3.5 billion for high-speed rail corridor development in FY24, with at least $350 million set aside for planning grants, and report language directing funding to true high-speed rail systems.

In addition to $3.5 billion for the federal high-speed rail program, with a 10% set aside for planning grants, the letter requests inclusion of the following report language:

"High-speed rail assistance.—The Committee recognizes the importance of high-speed rail for meeting our nation’s economic, social, and environmental needs. The Committee also recognizes that defining a corridor as high-speed requires the project to surpass current speed standards. For this purpose, the Committee directs the Secretary of Transportation and Administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration to prioritize grants funded under Chapter 261 of Title 49, United States Code, for passenger rail projects that are reasonably expected to achieve at least 186 miles per hour on new, dedicated right-of way and 160 miles per hour on shared right-of-way. Additionally, the Committee recognizes the value of building a pipeline of high-speed rail projects for development. In order to achieve a robust national network, the Committee directs the Federal Railroad Administration to prioritize planning grants for communities where there is no current high-speed rail passenger service nor construction."

Five Senators have signed on so far (as of March 23): Ossoff, Jon; Warnock, Raphael; Duckworth, Tammy; Warren, Elizabeth; and Padilla, Alex

43 House Members have already signed on (as of March 23): Allred, Colin; Beyer, Donald; Blumenauer, Earl; Bonamici, Suzanne; Bowman, Jamaal; Brown, Shontel; Budzinski, Nikki; Carter, Troy; Cherfilus-McCormick, Sheila; Cleaver, Emanuel; Costa, Jim; Courtney, Joe; Davids, Sharice; Davis, Danny; Dean, Madeleine; DeGette, Diana; DelBene, Suzan; Fitzpatrick, Brian; García, Jesús; Gottheimer, Josh; Green, Al; Hayes, Jahana; Himes, James; Jayapal, Pramila; Lee, Barbara; Lofgren, Zoe; Lynch, Stephen; Magaziner, Seth; Matsui, Doris; Moore, Gwen; Moulton, Seth; Norton, Eleanor; Panetta, Jimmy; Ruppersberger, C.; Schakowsky, Janice; Sherrill, Mikie; Smith, Adam; Strickland, Marilyn; Swalwell, Eric; Titus, Dina; Torres, Ritchie; Williams, Nikema.

"On behalf of Amtrak’s onboard service staff, I want to thank the Rail Passengers Association for honoring their hard work with this award. The past couple years have indeed been difficult for Amtrak onboard service staff – coping with furloughs and job insecurity, adapting to changing protocols and services, not to mention the unfortunate events such as a tragic derailment and a fatal shooting. Nevertheless, our dedicated members at Amtrak have handled these hurdles with the care, attention and diligence for which they’re known. We thank Rail Passengers for their acknowledgement of our members’ hard work and, as always, look forward to seeing you on the rails."

Arthur Maratea, TCU/IAM National President
December 21, 2021, on the Association awarding its 2021 Golden Spike Award to the Frontline Amtrak Employees.