Your daily source of fresh takes on news affecting America's passengers. See also the weekly NARP Hotline.
October 15, 2015
Image courtesy of the Amtrak Collection When I pictured a train ride before I took my first one, the image that came to mind was always a heavily romanticized notion of the past. A gleaming silver exterior displays the somewhat grandiose title of the train to all the people waiting on the platform. There is a dining car with waiters in crisp uniforms and plate ware that breaks when you drop it...
October 12, 2015
NARP has been working hard to keep our members updated on the looming rail technology deadline that is threatening rail service across the nation. Now, we’re starting to see movement that indicates NARP members’ efforts are producing results on Capitol Hill, with a bipartisan coalition forming to demand a reasonable deadline extension as part of a comprehensive rail bill. As a result of a l...
October 1, 2015
Yesterday, Congress passed a short-term extension to keep the government running through December 11. This will allow legislators to turn their attention to other pressing issues—such as the Positive Train Control deadline facing passengers. NARP has reported extensively on the January 1st PTC deadline, which if not addressed threatens to bring commuter trains, Amtrak, and freight trains to a h...
September 28, 2015
A coach attendant on the Silver Meteor assisting passengers at Winter Haven, Fla. Photo by Chuck Gomez for Amtrak, from the Amtrak Corporate Collection. By M.E. Singer Recently, transportation articles have blamed partisan gridlock in Washington as the cause for the continuing stagnation of our inter-city passenger rail. On the contrary, federal funding decisions continue to exemplify one of...
September 22, 2015
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...