Hotline #930

Despite earlier predictions from Senate transportation leaders, Congress’ newest stopgap budget proposal to avoid a government shutdown fails to extend a deadline for a rail safety technology—a decision that threatens to leave train passengers and freight shippers left stranded at the station come January 1.

[ACT NOW to tell your elected officials that you depend on trains!]

Congressional leaders said they would use the short-term budget extension—called a Continuing Resolution—as a vehicle to extend the deadline for implementing Positive Train Control (PTC). PTC is an important lifesaving safety technology that serves as a layer of redundancy against human error; federal investigators stated it would have prevented the deadly derailment of Amtrak 188 north of Philadelphia in May 2015.

"PTC is a life-saving technology, and it absolutely must be implemented,” said NARP President Jim Mathews in a press release. “However, it is clear that most railroads will not meet the deadline, so we must do everything in our power to guarantee that the trains are still running in 2016. Trains are still one of the safest ways to travel, and forcing people off the rails and on to overcrowded highways makes our nation less safe and our economy less productive. What we’re seeing now is the manufacturing process for an artificial crisis. Our transportation systems face enough challenges without creating new ones to fix.”

“Fortunately, the solution is easy: the full Congress must pass the long-term surface transportation bill the Senate passed in July,” said Mathews. “This bill not only contains a reasonable PTC extension, it also contains a number of extremely promising provisions that—with the proper funding levels—could be used to build the efficient intermodal transportation network that American businesses will need to compete globally in the 21st Century.”

Given the scope of the technical challenges of installing a seamless technology across 40 railroads covering 68,000 miles of track—coupled with a severe lack of funding for Amtrak and commuter railroads to implement the safety mandate—it has been long understood that most railroads would not meet the January 1, 2016 deadline for beginning operations. NARP submitted a path for responsible extension of the deadline to Congress in February 2015, and has been warning about the consequences of failing to extend the deadline for months. These warnings were underscored by a September 2015 report issued by the Government Accountability Office, which warned that most railroads are not capable of meeting the deadline.

Now, a host of rail operators across the country—including New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority and Chicago’s Metra—warn they will be forced to halt passenger and freight service on January 1. That would hurt everyone from Amtrak long-distance customers on their holiday to commuter rail passengers trying to get to work. Given the complex logistics involved, draw-down planning could begin as early as next month, including service discontinuation notices to passengers.

ACT NOW to write your Members of Congress and tell them to pass the DRIVE Act. Your train is too important to play politics with!

The New Jersey Senate approved a proposal yesterday from Governors Chris Christie of New Jersey and Andrew Cuomo of New York to build a new rail tunnel between the two states underneath the Hudson River by a vote of 38-0.

“The efforts from the very beginning have been bipartisan in nature,” Senate Minority Leader Tom Kean Jr. told the Courier Post.

A story in the New York Business Journal noted how officials have warned that the consequences of a tunnel failure would be terrible, but have also largely declined to specify the degree of catastrophe. Politico New York tried to get those answers, and what government agencies are planning to do in the event of a tunnel closure, but was rebuffed at nearly every turn.

To highlight the potential problem, Politico New York explained that closing one tube in the tunnel would actually reduce service by 75 percent: since Amtrak owns it, its trains will likely have priority, leaving New Jersey Transit all but crippled. For its part, New Jersey Transit told Politico New York it has a plan that involves buses and private carriers, but did not elaborate. No other agency, on either side of the Hudson, responded with specifics for the report, other than that they do have plans.

NARP has been a strong proponent of getting the $12 billion in funds for the Gateway Project, a set of rail infrastructure improvements designed to improve current services and create new capacity that will allow the doubling of passenger trains running under the Hudson River. The program will increase track, tunnel, bridge, and station capacity, eventually creating four mainline tracks between Newark, NJ, and Penn Station, New York, including a new, two-track Hudson River tunnel. A national survey of state rail plans and grant applications undertaken by NARP documents an enormous unmet demand for intercity passenger rail investment -- including the Hudson River Tunnels -- that is growing with each passing year.

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), the State of North Carolina, and the Commonwealth of Virginia announced September 18 that they have agreed upon the final environmental impact statement for the proposed Richmond to Raleigh passenger rail line, clearing the way for construction to take place once funding is secured.

“Without a strong passenger rail system, the Southeast’s growth will be choked by congestion for a very long time,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said. “North Carolina, Virginia and the Department of Transportation have worked together to bring us closer to high-speed rail connecting Richmond and Raleigh, and I urge everyone involved to continue pushing this effort forward. High-speed rail in this region is not a luxury but a necessity.”

"Citizens are voting for this with their train tickets," added Foxx in an editorial published in the Raleigh News Observer. "Train ridership between Raleigh and Charlotte has grown by roughly 100,000 in recent years, and Virginia has seen close to a 100 percent increase in ridership on its regional trains. Businesses and government are primed to make the Southeast corridor plan a reality. We know it will not be possible to build this overnight, but let’s not get caught up in obstacles or slowed down by a we’ll-build-this-eventually mentality. The Department of Transportation is bullish about rail and continues to push for predictable, dedicated federal funding for intercity passenger rail. In the meantime, the department has invested $691 million in foundational improvements to the Southeast corridor and recently committed to undertake a $1 million planning effort in the region."

Securing a dedicated source of funding for a passenger train trust fund is the best way secure the advancement of this project, as well as countless others across the U.S. Without predictable funding, which highways and airports have enjoyed for the last half century, states won't be able to engage in the kind of long-term planning required to build functioning transportation systems.

Amtrak has denied claims put forth by New York Senator Chuck Schumer that Alstom Transport has been selected to build the next generation of high-speed trainsets, a contract valued at $2.5 billion.

Alstom is a French corporation; however the company has a manufacturing plant in Hornell, New York.

“Schumer said the Amtrak Board of Directors is poised to give Amtrak management permission to move forward with negotiating a final contract with Alstom starting later today with the goal of final approval by the end of December 2015," said the Senator's office in a widely distributed press release. "While the final details of the contract between Amtrak and Alstom are still being worked out, tomorrow’s action by the Amtrak Board paves the way for that process to happen quickly and seamlessly. In addition to negotiating final contract details, final approval of federal funding from the RIFF program will also be needed. As a result, Schumer said during his visit that he will continue to urge the USDOT to provide Amtrak with all of the necessary approvals so that it can move the project forward with Alstom as its provider as quickly as possible."

While Amtrak didn't publicly respond to Senator Schumer's statement, inside sources said the contract was still in the open phase of the procurement process. That was confirmed by a statement issued by Alstom Transport.

“Should this contract materialize, this would ‎be a great recognition of Alstom’s expertise in high-speed and we will be honored to serve Amtrak for this ambitious project,” said Alstom Transport President Henri Poupart-Lafarge.

The existing Acela trains were acquired in December 2000, and are under leases that expire between 2021 and 2023. Acela passenger cars feature reclining seats, electrical outlets for cell phone chargers, laptop computers and tablets.

NARP has been honored with a bequest from the estate of long-time member George E. McCallum, the largest monetary gift ever received by the association.

"We are humbled and inspired to receive this wonderful gift, which will help NARP bring like-minded parties together across all political viewpoints to help advance the national conversation about rail service into a larger, forward-looking intermodal vision which we’re calling `A Connected America,’” said President and CEO Jim Mathews. “A Connected America links states and regions together with a high-quality, balanced intermodal and multimodal transportation system that serves all our citizens.”

George McCallum was committed to the importance of providing safe, reliable rail options as part of the U.S. multimodal transportation system. “He felt strongly that his gift would energize NARP and encourage its 28,000 members to continue their efforts to advocate on the federal, state and local level to ensure that our country has the public and private funding for future infrastructure projects,” said Mathews. “In the weeks and months ahead, NARP will be taking on new momentum and accelerating some of the initiatives begun under our new leadership team.”

You can read more about the bequest here.

In Oregon, Gov. Kate Brown (D) has reactivated a panel originally created by former Gov. John Kitzhaber to develop a long-term plan to pay for transportation projects from transit and highway construction, to improvements for pedestrians and bicyclists reports the Daily Astorian.

Kitzhaber formed the panel in December 2014 with the charge of delivering a report this year with its vision for the future of Oregon transportation. But it stopped meeting after Kitzhaber resigned in February.

Earlier this year, Oregon rail passengers faced a crisis when a state budget panel cut by more than 50 percent a request for $10.4 million to continue the two daily Cascades train roundtrips between Portland and Eugene for the biennium, starting July 1. The money was restored, but only for the next two years.

When NARP Chairman Robert Stewart wrote about about his experience riding on the Silver Star following Amtrak's decision to eliminate the Dining Car on the train as a cost-cutting measure, you let us know that you agreed this move is bad for passengers. Much like the Silver Star passengers that our chairman spoke to, NARP members wrote in to say how disappointed they were.

The fact of the matter is: when dining amenities on a long haul train are gutted, normally high revenue sleeping cars generate less income, dragging both the fiscal and customer service performance of the entire train into a downward spiral. This becomes a problem not just for every person who rides the train, but also for the communities the trains serve.

NARP is asking members to help spread the message: America's passengers deserve better, through our “Donate For Dining Cars” campaign. When you purchase an insulated Dining Car food bag, it will not only support NARP's work to build a passenger-focused passenger rail network, but help us get the message to Congress that micromanagement of the nation's passenger railway, such as eliminating Dining Cars on long-haul rail service, is not the way to go.

Thanks to your donations, NARP has been successful with its efforts on Capitol Hill and around the country. You can pay $50 for one bag or $75 for two bags -- one to you and one to a member of your congressional delegation. Your purchase does two things -- send a message to Congress on keeping Dining Cars in place and continue to fund NARP advocacy efforts. We appreciate your support.

J. Charles (Chuck) Riecks, NARP's vice chair for government relations, was one of the presenters at the recent 2015 West Virginia Transportation Planning Conference. The conference was sponsored jointly by the West Virginia Department of Transportation, the Federal Highway Administration, and the various Metropolitan Planning Organizations in West Virginia.

Riecks' workshop presentation was entitled "Smart Growth and Transportation for West Virginia." It included not only information on the land use concept of Smart Growth, but also its related transportation topic, Transit-Oriented Development.

Smart Growth is the name given to a philosophy of land use planning and zoning that emphasizes healthy communities and neighborhoods, sustainable business development, and reliable low-cost, ecologically sensitive mobility. In promoting mobility, Smart Growth emphasizes the community must follow the precepts of Transit-Oriented Development and provide a variety of public transportation options. In providing these options, Smart Growth places passenger rail, especially commuter rail, light rail, and streetcars, at the center of the planning efforts, as opposed to being considered only after "other transportation systems."

Read more on the NARP blog.

Finally, please continue to check our website for the latest updates on NARP’s 2015 Fall Council and Membership Meeting, October 16-18 in Indianapolis. There’s still space available for the Friday tour of Amtrak’s Beech Grove Maintenance Facility, from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., including lunch. The tour is open only to NARP members, who must be registered to participate in Saturday’s ‘A Connected America’ Advocacy Day in order to attend.

On Saturday, October 17, members will participate in ‘A Connected America’ Advocacy And Learning Day from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., which will include a keynote address by Ed Ellis, president of Iowa Pacific Holdings. On Sunday, October 18, members will participate in NARP business sessions and will hear a keynote lunch speaker. We have posted information about alternative hotels, since the main hotel, the Crowne Plaza, is sold out. We look forward to seeing you in Indianapolis.