House approves Amtrak funding

[frigidmagi]

CNN

A nearly $15 billion Amtrak bill passed the House on Wednesday as lawmakers rallied around an alternative for travelers saddled with soaring gas prices.
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A record 25.8 million passengers took Amtrak in the most recent fiscal year.

The bipartisan bill, which passed by a veto-proof margin of 311-104, would authorize funding for the national passenger railroad over the next five years. Some of the money would go to a program of matching grants to help states set up or expand rail service.

Besides the $14.9 billion provided for Amtrak and intercity rail, an amendment to the bill would authorize $1.5 billion for Washington's Metro transit system over the next 10 years.

The White House has threatened a veto, saying the bill doesn't hold Amtrak accountable for its spending. But similar legislation has passed the Senate, also with enough support to override a veto.

"Nothing could be more fitting to bring before the Congress today, on a day when gasoline has reached $4.05 a gallon across the United States on average," said Rep. John Mica, R-Florida, a longtime Amtrak critic who teamed up with Transportation Committee Chairman James Oberstar, D-Minnesota, on the legislation.

Amtrak's previous authorization expired in 2002. The railroad's supporters say that a new authorization will allow Amtrak to make long-range plans and take advantage of what they say is a growing appetite for passenger rail.

Unlike the Senate version, the House bill includes a requirement for the Department of Transportation to seek proposals from private companies to create a high-speed service that would take travelers from Washington to New York in two hours or less. The idea has long been championed by Mica, who says the United States must catch up with European and Asian countries on high-speed rail travel.

Critics say the proposal would undermine Amtrak by peeling off its most valuable asset: the Northeast Corridor.
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Rep. Bill Shuster of Pennsylvania said provisions that open the door to private investment should help ease the concerns of fellow Republicans who have balked at supporting Amtrak.

But those provisions could complicate things when the House tries to work out a compromise bill with the Senate.

Amtrak said it was pleased that both the House and the Senate had acted.

"This reflects strong support for intercity passenger rail service, and we look forward to working with Congress as they move forward to reconcile a final authorization bill," spokesman Cliff Black said.

The Bush administration and other Amtrak critics want to see the company move toward self-sufficiency, but Amtrak supporters say passenger railroads around the globe require government subsidies and point to the large sums of federal money spent on highways.

A bid by Rep. Geoff Davis, R-Kentucky, to send the bill back to committee to add an alternative fuel study was rejected.

"In the areas where American budgets are being hardest hit by gas prices, consuming 16 percent of gross incomes, they have very little access to Amtrak," Davis said. "How does this bill help those Americans deal with our energy crisis?"

Amtrak's boosters say the high cost of driving has made people eager for more and better rail service.

A record 25.8 million passengers took Amtrak in the last fiscal year. The railroad expects ridership to approach 28 million this year, Black said.

May was the biggest month in Amtrak's 37-year history, with total ridership up 12 percent over last year and ticket revenue up 16 percent over last year. Black said Amtrak's marketing research indicates that about half the increase can be attributed to gas prices.

Good News Everyone hmmmm Yes.

Okay it's not a cure, but it's a start and hey look, bi-partisanship. They can be taught!

[Derek Thunder]

With any hopes the infrastructure for high-speed trains will be laid in the next few decades - Double-tracked routes with electric lines. A big problem for passenger trains now is that a lot of the lines are owned by freight companies, and single-track routes give priority to freight trains, so delays are pretty common as passenger trains are forced onto sidings. Additionally, having trains powered by electricity rather than diesel means that prices will be more steady, and emissions of greenhouse gases will be more centralized, making sequestration or remediation easier.

That's beyond the advantages that a good train network would have over automobiles in terms of energy consumption. Also, the whole improved safety thing. I don't know if a national train network is desirable (planes might be better for routes like New York - LA) but regional networks such as the northeast corridor or the proposed California high-speed system could be pretty useful.

[frigidmagi]

I think a national train network would met a demand and be somewhat useful. Especially if riding on it was made comfortable. Then it might seem more attractive then being bogged down in the family car on the highway.

[Derek Thunder]

It's definitely more comfortable, I won't argue that, especially when you're toting around whiny smelly hu-mon children, but driving from LA to San Francisco, or Phoenix to Tucson is way more common than driving from Miami to Chicago. At the same time though, considering how uncomfortable airlines are, and how much ticket prices are climbing, maybe it will become the preferred method of countrywide travel.

[Dark Silver]

Honestly, I'd love to see a nation-wide rail line. I'd definatly take it over a plane anyday (especially if it was more comfortable than what we get on airplanes now).

Admittedly, it may not be as fast as a airplane, but being able to relax for the entire trip without worrying if your gonna accidently knock the jerk crowding the seat next to you would be nice.

[Hadrianvs]

Yes! About time! Rails are awesome! I do all my Chicago - Springfield travel in them.

[LadyTevar]

YAY! Charleston's got her Depot for another budget session!

Sen Byrd put it in writing: As long as Amtrak accepts Govn money, there WILL BE a passenger train through Charleston WV.

[SirNitram]

Not just the next budget cycle, but the next five years. Rahall was instrumental, especially in the money for more rail service.