Comments on: Challenges for Amtrak http://seattletransitblog.com/2008/08/08/the-puzzlement-of-amtrak/ Transit in the Greater Seattle Area Mon, 13 Feb 2012 06:28:16 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: EvergreenRailfan http://seattletransitblog.com/2008/08/08/the-puzzlement-of-amtrak/#comment-7181 EvergreenRailfan Wed, 13 Aug 2008 07:01:50 +0000 http://seattletransitblog.com/?p=972#comment-7181 The blame for Amtrak's problems does not totally reside with the Bush Adminstration. It resides with the Clinton, Bush, Sr, Reagan, Carter, and Nixon Administration. In the case of the Ford Administration, they had a competent CEO that had done a good job running passenger trains for the B&O and later Illinois Central. Fighting Reagan's attempt to kill what was left of Amtrak after Carter's cuts(including the North Coast Hiawatha which served the populated portion of Montana, the Floridian, and some other services) was another competent CEO who ran the Southern Railroad after 1971, and opted out of Amtrak for about 10 years. Cutting services only lead to the increase in the losses, and the decline to focus on the corridors, at the expense of the National Network. Amtrak is a corporation, that is in it's name, but it also includes National. National Railroad Passenger Corporation. Not Northeast Corridor and a few select corridors here and there Railroad Passenger Corporation. We need a national policy to try to connect every community a rail line goes through with the network if possible. If gas prices continue this path they are on, and occasionally spiking above $4 per gallon, it might be worth considering restoring service on branch lines, even if it is a Mixed Train. Those were the last privately operated, non-Amtrak services in the country. They lasted into the 1980s in Georgia because the State of Georgia, when they charted the Georgia Railroad, gave them a break from state taxes if they continued to provide some kind of passenger service. Unfortunately they did not specify that it had to be comfortable, or on-time. http://www.narprail.org/cms/index.php/narpblog/a_tale_of_the_georgia_mixed/ The long distance trains have a place, and they should be improved. On board services as well as the on-time performance. When Amtrak has to turn away coach passengers because there is no space available, that is a bad thing. I find it hard to believe former Republican Congressmember and MSNBC host Joe Scarborough has come out in support of Amtrak, and he just blurted it out on his most recent show(before MSNBC pre-empted it for the Olympics). All his district had was the Sunset Limited, and they do not even have that anymore.
The blame for Amtrak’s problems does not totally reside with the Bush Adminstration. It resides with the Clinton, Bush, Sr, Reagan, Carter, and Nixon Administration. In the case of the Ford Administration, they had a competent CEO that had done a good job running passenger trains for the B&O and later Illinois Central. Fighting Reagan’s attempt to kill what was left of Amtrak after Carter’s cuts(including the North Coast Hiawatha which served the populated portion of Montana, the Floridian, and some other services) was another competent CEO who ran the Southern Railroad after 1971, and opted out of Amtrak for about 10 years. Cutting services only lead to the increase in the losses, and the decline to focus on the corridors, at the expense of the National Network. Amtrak is a corporation, that is in it’s name, but it also includes National. National Railroad Passenger Corporation. Not Northeast Corridor and a few select corridors here and there Railroad Passenger Corporation.

We need a national policy to try to connect every community a rail line goes through with the network if possible. If gas prices continue this path they are on, and occasionally spiking above $4 per gallon, it might be worth considering restoring service on branch lines, even if it is a Mixed Train. Those were the last privately operated, non-Amtrak services in the country. They lasted into the 1980s in Georgia because the State of Georgia, when they charted the Georgia Railroad, gave them a break from state taxes if they continued to provide some kind of passenger service. Unfortunately they did not specify that it had to be comfortable, or on-time.

http://www.narprail.org/cms/index.php/narpblog/a_tale_of_the_georgia_mixed/

The long distance trains have a place, and they should be improved. On board services as well as the on-time performance. When Amtrak has to turn away coach passengers because there is no space available, that is a bad thing. I find it hard to believe former Republican Congressmember and MSNBC host Joe Scarborough has come out in support of Amtrak, and he just blurted it out on his most recent show(before MSNBC pre-empted it for the Olympics). All his district had was the Sunset Limited, and they do not even have that anymore.

]]> By: Trains for America http://seattletransitblog.com/2008/08/08/the-puzzlement-of-amtrak/#comment-7118 Trains for America Tue, 12 Aug 2008 14:59:15 +0000 http://seattletransitblog.com/?p=972#comment-7118 Just so you know, there is a bill in the Senate right now to divert a small portion of the federal gas tax to help Amtrak buy new rolling stock and refurbish old cars. http://trains4america.wordpress.com/2008/07/30/sen-dick-durbin-proposes-funding-for-more-amtrak-rolling-stock/
Just so you know, there is a bill in the Senate right now to divert a small portion of the federal gas tax to help Amtrak buy new rolling stock and refurbish old cars.

http://trains4america.wordpress.com/2008/07/30/sen-dick-durbin-proposes-funding-for-more-amtrak-rolling-stock/

]]> By: brad http://seattletransitblog.com/2008/08/08/the-puzzlement-of-amtrak/#comment-6956 brad Sat, 09 Aug 2008 16:28:28 +0000 http://seattletransitblog.com/?p=972#comment-6956 The blame for Amtrak's issues rests squarely on the shoulders of the Bush Administration. Every year Amtrak asks for funds to accelerate the repairs to the mothballed fleet, and every year Congress puts it in the transit bill, and every year Bush vetoes it. Ditto infrastructure improvements. Sorry, don't like the bumpy crossing at Kalama? Frustrated with the overall repair situation of the tracks along the PDX-SEA route? BNSF made $350 million in profits last quarter. They made $1.8 BILLION last year. Perhaps they ought to start taking care of their own house, before paying out that $137 million dividend to shareholders. Or at least if they are going to go around looking for governmental handouts, the least they could do is actually give passenger trains the operational priority that is legally mandated.
The blame for Amtrak’s issues rests squarely on the shoulders of the Bush Administration. Every year Amtrak asks for funds to accelerate the repairs to the mothballed fleet, and every year Congress puts it in the transit bill, and every year Bush vetoes it. Ditto infrastructure improvements.

Sorry, don’t like the bumpy crossing at Kalama? Frustrated with the overall repair situation of the tracks along the PDX-SEA route?

BNSF made $350 million in profits last quarter. They made $1.8 BILLION last year. Perhaps they ought to start taking care of their own house, before paying out that $137 million dividend to shareholders.

Or at least if they are going to go around looking for governmental handouts, the least they could do is actually give passenger trains the operational priority that is legally mandated.

]]> By: serial catowner http://seattletransitblog.com/2008/08/08/the-puzzlement-of-amtrak/#comment-6953 serial catowner Sat, 09 Aug 2008 16:05:11 +0000 http://seattletransitblog.com/?p=972#comment-6953 The challenge is not to Amtrak- it is to us. For almost forty years Amtrak, saddled with the pension obligations and arguably some of the least productive employees from the railroads who got out of the passenger business, has kept the trains running. There can hardly be a leaner meaner corporation out there. Two or three times they've upgraded the entire fleet of motive power. They've gone through an entire tech revolution of ticketing and marketing, and, like some lady dancer, they do it in high heels and backwards, translating the demands of their Congressional sponsors into service provided on leased rails of unfriendly freight railroads. Most of their CEOs have been railroaders to the core, extremely experienced and formerly chiefs of other roads, taking on a job with little glory and less pay because they love the railroad and the challenge. What Amtrak needs is capital and political support. And what you, dear reader, can do about it is to learn more about railroads and passenger trains- bearing in mind, always, that what you're learning is just one of the blind men describing the elephant. Because, just as sure as the Lord made little green apples, a rising demand for Amtrak will bring hare-brained schemes from one side and a perfect storm of jeering from the peanut gallery. Connecting the dots ain't that hard- wires from solar and wind power generators to passenger rail = less global warming. The devil is in the details.
The challenge is not to Amtrak- it is to us.

For almost forty years Amtrak, saddled with the pension obligations and arguably some of the least productive employees from the railroads who got out of the passenger business, has kept the trains running.

There can hardly be a leaner meaner corporation out there. Two or three times they’ve upgraded the entire fleet of motive power. They’ve gone through an entire tech revolution of ticketing and marketing, and, like some lady dancer, they do it in high heels and backwards, translating the demands of their Congressional sponsors into service provided on leased rails of unfriendly freight railroads. Most of their CEOs have been railroaders to the core, extremely experienced and formerly chiefs of other roads, taking on a job with little glory and less pay because they love the railroad and the challenge.

What Amtrak needs is capital and political support. And what you, dear reader, can do about it is to learn more about railroads and passenger trains- bearing in mind, always, that what you’re learning is just one of the blind men describing the elephant.

Because, just as sure as the Lord made little green apples, a rising demand for Amtrak will bring hare-brained schemes from one side and a perfect storm of jeering from the peanut gallery.

Connecting the dots ain’t that hard- wires from solar and wind power generators to passenger rail = less global warming. The devil is in the details.

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