Your weekly source of fresh takes on news affecting America's passengers. See also the NARP Blog.
January 31, 2014
By Sean Jeans-Gail Following months of serious delays to the Empire Builder service, NARP issued a letter to U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx asking him to bring together stakeholders to address the ongoing problem. The Empire Builder connects communities in eight states, providing an important economic link for towns along the route, and connecting rural residents to vit...
January 24, 2014
By Sean Jeans-Gail Amtrak and the California High-Speed Rail Authority (CAHSRA) issued a joint request for proposals today for 43 high-speed trainsets, a critical step in meeting the booming demand on the Northeast Corridor and turning California’s statewide high speed rail system into reality. The 28 high-speed Amtrak trainsets, with 400 to 450 seats each, will be a critical short-term solu...
January 17, 2014
By Sean Jeans-Gail The U.S. Congress passed a compromise $1.1 trillion omnibus 2014 budget this week, with a continued tightening of the fiscal belt on discretionary spending. Amtrak’s funding numbers were a mixed bag, with increases to capital numbers paired with cuts to its operating budget. President Obama is expected to sign the bill into law. Total Amtrak funding actually increased by 3.4...
January 10, 2014
In a National Press Club luncheon talk today that C-Span broadcast, and likely will rebroadcast, Amtrak President & CEO Joseph Boardman said it is time to replace the highway program with a surface transportation program. He said the Highway Trust Fund is dead, not just because it is out of money but because it is built on an outmoded vision. The new program must be based on results rather t...
January 3, 2014
A massive winter storm slammed into the Midwest and Northeast last night, snarling transportation networks from Chicago to Boston. Airports throughout New England ground to a halt. Amtrak, however, was able to operate a modified snow schedule along the entire Northeast Corridor. The storm, which dumped up to 21 inches of snow in some regions, was severe enough to Governors Andrew Cuomo and C...