67 replies to this topic

[CNJRoss]

Insider, 6/25/21

 

Amtrak may not see the full $80 billion Biden suggested, but planned infrastructure laws may finally help it beat out freight trains

• Biden's revised $1.2 trillion infrastructure plan doesn't give Amtrak the $80 billion it was initially promised. 
• Passenger and freight rail will only get a combined $66 billion if the compromise proposal passes.
• Amtrak may, however, get to take freight rail companies to court over disputes that have been causing lengthy delays.

 

New details of President Joe Biden's revised infrastructure plan have emerged following a Thursday compromise with Congressional Republicans. A total of $1.2 trillion in funding will be distributed if the bill is passed in Congress, down from an initial $2 trillion, though some Republicans are already distancing themselves from the plan. 

 

Investments in the nation's railroads are still a priority in the new plan, largely owing to the president's former life as an Amtrak-commuting senator.

 

The White House maintains that the funding will "Improve healthy, sustainable transportation options for millions of Americans by modernizing and expanding transit and rail networks across the country while reducing greenhouse gas emissions."

 

Continue here.

[CNJRoss]

The Wichita (KS) Eagle, 6/8/21

 

Amtrak execs push to get Wichita back on track with proposed route from Newton to OKC

 

 

The top two executives of Amtrak committed their support Tuesday to creating a new rail route that would link Newton and Wichita to Oklahoma City and Fort Worth, opening a variety of possible connections to Chicago and the east and west coasts.

 

The proposal announced by Amtrak President Stephen Gardner and CEO Bill Flynn would close a longstanding gap by extending the Heartland Flyer route from its current northern terminus at Oklahoma City through Ponca City, Wichita and Newton.

 

It would also increase the frequency of train service between Oklahoma City and Fort Worth.

 

Continue here.

 

Cross posted in Heartland Flyer thread and American Jobs Plan thread.

[CNJRoss]

Progressive Railroading, July 2021

 

Amtrak at 50 — and Beyond

 

Shown: One of Amtrak’s next-gen Acela trainsets undergoing testing on the Northeast Corridor. The first of the new trains will begin revenue service in spring 2022. Photo – Amtrak

 

 

On May 1, 1971, the first Amtrak train rolled out of New York City on its way to Philadelphia, less than a year after President Richard Nixon signed the Rail Passenger Service Act of 1970 to establish the start of the National Passenger Rail Corp.

 

The creation of a national passenger railroad stemmed from a desire of the nation’s railroads — many of which were in or nearing bankruptcy — to unload unprofitable passenger service and focus only on hauling freight. To preserve intercity passenger-rail service, the Rail Passenger Service Act consolidated 20 passenger railroads into what would become known as Amtrak.

 

But for many years after its founding, some members of Congress and other political leaders continued to debate whether a national passenger railroad would — or should — survive: Would Amtrak be able to operate a safe, well-run and well-equipped service for passengers? Should taxpayer dollars be used to support a national rail service in the United States?  

 

Consequently, such questions meant Amtrak and its supporters spent a lot of energy making the case for the railroad’s ongoing existence and federal funding. Even as Congress continued pouring federal funding into the nation’s highways and airports (such as $46 billion for highways in 2019), many on Capitol Hill stuck to the belief that tax money shouldn’t be spent on a national passenger-rail system.

 

Times have changed, however. As Amtrak marks the 50-year milestone, it does so with support on both sides of the political aisle and from a president known as “Amtrak Joe” for his longtime backing of the railroad. Now the railroad has an “all-time level of common support” in Congress, says Amtrak President Stephen Gardner.

 

“What is remarkable today is how little the conversation is over whether Amtrak or passenger rail should exist in the United States. We’re now into conversations about how we should build the service, where we should have the service and what type of service it should be,” he says.

 

Continue here.

[KevinKorell]

Progressive Railroading, 7/21/21:

 

 

   Amtrak, PA rail authority to partner on Scranton-NYC rail service    

 

 

The Pennsylvania Northeast Regional Railroad Authority (PNRRA) has signed a joint planning agreement with Amtrak related to the proposed operation of intercity passenger-rail service between Scranton, Pennsylvania, and New York City.

 

Update

[KevinKorell]

Railway Age, 7/21/21:

 

 

    Amtrak, Scranton to New York City?  

 

 

The Pennsylvania Northeast Regional Railroad Authority (PNRRA) has signed a Joint Planning Agreement with Amtrak for proposed operation of new intercity service between Scranton, Pa., and New York Penn Station, using the long-dormant, State of New Jersey- and Commonwealth of Pennsylvania-owned Lackawanna Cut-Off. The service is one of the new routes in Amtrak’s 2035 system plan.

 

Story is here.

 

 

 

Amtrak will provide professional services including infrastructure assessment and ridership and revenue forecasting estimates of equipment needs and other analysis, which is estimated take approximately one year to complete and cost $400,000.

 

Oh, great, another analysis.  I wonder if this takes the onus off NJ TRANSIT to provide service on the Lackawanna Cutoff, or will they still go to Andover?  It looks like Andover would be a stop on the eventual Amtrak service.

[CNJRoss]

Slate, 7/30/21
 

A Genius Plan for Amtrak

 

What the beleaguered operator should do with $66 billion from Congress.

 

 

Amtrak Joe delivers.

 

The bipartisan infrastructure bill that seems likely to pass the Senate contains $66 billion for intercity rail, which is pretty damn close to the $80 billion President Joe Biden asked for in April. The White House calls it “the largest investment in passenger rail since the creation of Amtrak 50 years ago.”

 

The deal includes $22 billion in “grants” for Amtrak, another $24 billion specifically for the Northeast Corridor, and another $20 billion for intercity service, safety grants, and grade crossing improvements. (What’s the difference between the first chunk of grants and the last? The White House hasn’t detailed that yet.)

 

That will mean better Amtrak service on existing high-traffic routes (relatively speaking) like Portland–Seattle, Richmond–D.C., and Chicago–Milwaukee. It might mean new service in fast-growing regions, like between Charlotte and Atlanta or Atlanta and Nashville.

 

Continue here.

[KevinKorell]

WOLF-TV, Fox-56 in Hazleton, PA,  9/10/21:

 

 

    Amtrak plans to bring passenger rail from Scranton to New York City 

 

 

Amtrak has a vision to make trains more accessible in Pennsylvania and today they were joined virtually by Governor Wolf and Pennsylvania state and local officials to discuss their plans.

 

Story

[KevinKorell]

Allentown, PA Morning Call, 9/10/21:

 

 

     Amtrak officials say Lehigh Valley passenger rail service could be achieved in the next 3 years  

 

 

Lehigh Valley residents could be punching a train ticket to New York City in as little as three years, Amtrak officials said during a virtual news conference Friday morning.

 

Full story

[CNJRoss]

Progressive Railroading, 9/13/21

 

Gov. Wolf endorses Amtrak's Pennsylvania expansion plan

 

 

Gov. Tom Wolf last week joined Amtrak executives, congressional members and local leaders virtually to discuss Amtrak’s proposed improvements to and expansion of passenger-rail service in Pennsylvania.

 

Amtrak has proposed increased and new service in Pennsylvania, including Scranton, Allentown and Reading to New York, an additional Pennsylvanian frequency, as well as proposed upgrades to the Harrisburg line. The proposal is part of the railroad’s national expansion plan known as Connects Us.

 

Continue here.

[CNJRoss]

KMUW-FM, Wichita, KS  9/15/21

The Return Of Passenger Rail Could Mean Big Things For Towns Like Ark City — If Congress Makes It A Reality

 

South-central Kansas has been missing from Amtrak's map for decades. President Joe Biden's massive infrastructure plan could bring passenger service back to the region.

 

 

Sitting in the middle of Wilson Park near downtown Arkansas City is a massive, black steam engine from 1910.

 

The city restored the old Atchison Northern Santa Fe locomotive in 2008. It’s a symbol of the importance the rail industry has played in Ark City’s 150-year history.

 

“Rail is part of what our city was built on,” said Andrew Lawson, the city’s public information officer. “The rail’s always been here.”

But, like the rest of south-central Kansas, the town hasn’t had passenger rail service since 1979. Amtrak ended its Lone Star route between Chicago and Houston, leaving a sprawling gap from Oklahoma City to Wichita.

 

SNIP

 

On Amtrak’s long wish list of new and improved rail service is the Heartland Flyer, which makes one trip a day between Dallas and Oklahoma City. Advocates — and Amtrak — want to extend the route north to Newton and increase service, passing through Guthrie and Ponca City in Oklahoma, and Wichita and Ark City on the Kansas side of the tracks.

 

More here.