URGENT: S. B. 294 - Amtrak Reauthorization on Senate Floor Today!

Forwarded message from All Aboard Ohio:

Dear Supporter of Passenger Rail,

This important peice of legislation has come up to the Senate on such short notice that I have copied the information verbatum from Ross Capon, Executive Director of the National Association of Railroad Passengers. Please read the update on Senate Bill 294 below and email or call your Senator today.

Contact information for your Senator can be found here:
http://www.allaboardohio.org/cms/index.php/content/action/

Andrew Bremer
All Aboard Ohio

***


The Amtrak reauthorization bill came up on the Senate floor late yesterday. It will be on the floor today (Thursday) and possibly tomorrow and beyond. Debate today begins at 10:30 AM and a vote is planned for 12:30 PM on a Sununu amendment which could be the first of many nasty ones (including, apparently, one by Coburn, R-OK).

Sununu, as I understand it, would kill all trains that lose over $200 a passenger after a certain number of years. So this kills the long-distance network and doesn’t even use a rational basis (like revenue-to-cost ratio or loss per passenger-mile) to do it. Of course, the network is so skeletal that removing just about any individual route would have significant harmful network impacts. In other words, the domino theory applies here, whether or not you believe it in foreign policy!!

Phone calls this morning to Senate offices should urge votes against this and any other anti-train amendments. Most senators probably know an anti-train amendment when they see one. However, they can assume that an amendment is anti-train if Senators Lautenberg and Lott do not both accept said amendment as friendly.

Remember, when you phone and ask for the staff person, you may be offered voice-mail. Accept that offer and be sure to leave a substantive message. Do not rely on the staffer’s ability to return your call in a timely manner.

Your message could go like this: “Please support S. 294 and please vote against the Sununu per passenger subsidy cap amendment—a wolf in sheep’s clothing—and any other anti-train amendment that is offered.”

You can reach any Senate office by calling the Capitol Hill switchboard 202-224-3121. If you are on-line, your senators’ direct-dial number and web site are at
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm

Thanks for your efforts!

"Bill To Revitalize Amtrak Moves Forward, Heads To Senate Floor"

More good news regarding the nations passenger rail.

Press Release of Senator Lautenberg

http://lautenberg.senate.gov/newsroom/record.cfm?id=273085&

Lautenberg Bill To Revitalize Amtrak Moves Forward, Heads To Senate Floor

Integral Part of $19.2 Billion Package Will Put Nation's Passenger Rail
System Back On Track

Contact: Michael Pagan (202) 228-6393
Wednesday, April 25, 2007



WASHINGTON, D.C. - Legislation Senators Frank R. Lautenberg (D-NJ) and Trent
Lott (R-MS) sponsored to authorize full funding for America's passenger rail
needs for the next six years today was approved unanimously by the Senate
Commerce Committee and moved one step closer to becoming law. Sens.
Lautenberg and Lott authored similar legislation in 2005 that was approved
by the Senate by a vote of 93 to 6, but was not taken up by the House of
Representatives. The Lautenberg-Lott measure -- the Passenger Rail
Investment and Improvement Act of 2007 -- would authorize $11.4 billion in
federal funds for Amtrak and other rail passenger rail programs over six
years. Sens. Lautenberg and Lott have also proposed providing another $7.8
billion over six years for passenger rail development through the issuance
of federal bonds to States and Amtrak. This proposal is awaiting
consideration by the Senate Finance Committee.

The funds would be used to implement a comprehensive plan to revitalize and
reform Amtrak that would enhance security, put new on-time service standards
in place and make fundamental operational reforms in order to provide the
best quality service to its passengers. In addition, the legislation would
put the passenger rail system on solid financial footing with predictable
levels of capital and operational funding, a debt refinancing plan, and a
new financial accounting system.

"After several gloomy years, the future of America's passenger railroad is
bright. Our legislation will provide the necessary resources to bring Amtrak
up to speed as a real alternative to taking a plane or driving a car," said
Lautenberg. "People in New Jersey rely on Amtrak and want to be sure that
the system will be there for them in the future. With this plan, it will."

More than 25 million Americans ride Amtrak every year, and with the
increased congestion in America's airports and on its highways, passenger
rail is a vital alternative for intercity travel throughout the country.

The Lautenberg plan contains the following provisions:

• Funding Levels -- the six-year authorization plan, coupled with the
bonding proposal, would fully-fund Amtrak by authorizing $3.2 billion a year
for six years: $1.9 billion in annual appropriations and another $1.3
billion annually in bond authority.

• New State Grant Program -- included in the $3.2 billion annual total is
an average of $237 million in capital grants to states.

Improving the Northeast Corridor

• Northeast Corridor up to State-of-Good Repair -- the bill will provide
sufficient funding (100 percent federal) and direction to bring the
Northeast Corridor up to a "state-of-good-repair," including vital tunnel
life safety work in the Hudson River Tunnels.

• Improve Governance of Northeast Corridor -- the bill would improve
governance in the Northeast Corridor by giving States like New Jersey a
bigger voice in infrastructure and operations decisions.

Amtrak "Reform" Provisions to Reduce Annual Appropriations

• Operational Reforms -- the bill reduces Amtrak's annual appropriations
need by requiring certain reforms, expected to reduce Amtrak's operating
costs by 40 percent over the life of the bill.

• Debt Refinancing - the bill directs the Secretary of the Treasury to
attempt to refinance Amtrak's $3 billion in outstanding debt.

• New financial accounting system - the bill requires a new financial
accounting system for Amtrak to provide more transparency and better control
costs.

Provisions that will Improve Rail Service

• New Service Quality Standards - the bill would improve service for
passengers by requiring new standards for service quality (on-time
performance, on-board and station services, cost recovery, connectivity,
etc.) and by requiring periodic reporting of Amtrak's performance of these
measures by the Federal Railroad Administration.

• Improve Delays -- the bill would authorize the federal Surface
Transportation Board to issue fines to freight railroads who delay Amtrak
trains.

• Sets a Level Playing Field for Competition -- the bill ensures that any
private entity who competes against Amtrak complies with the same federal
laws that apply to Amtrak.

Other Provisions—Security and Board of Directors

• Amtrak Rail Security -- the bill includes a security title, which will
require important rail security improvements to the entire U.S. rail system.


• Restructure Board of Directors -- the bill would restructure the board
of directors by ensuring a bipartisan 9-member board of qualified members.
The bill is cosponsored by 37 Senators. ###

"All Aboard Ohio welcomes daylight Amtrak train to Cleveland

Breaking Amtrak News from All Aboard Ohio:

A L L A B O A R D O H I O

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Ken Prendergast, Director
March 30, 2007 Research/Communications
(216) 986-6064 office
(216) 288-4883 cell

All Aboard Ohio welcomes daylight Amtrak train to Cleveland

CLEVELAND – All Aboard Ohio, a nonprofit organization, today announced it welcomed what is hopefully an initial attempt at improving passenger train services in Ohio.

Starting April 3, Amtrak’s daily eastbound Lake Shore Limited (Train #49) will offer daylight service between Cleveland and cities in New York. The same train will also offer overnight service between Chicago and downtown Cleveland. Train #49 is scheduled to arrive Cleveland from Chicago at 6:22 a.m. and depart for New York at 7 a.m. First-class compartments, economy coach seating, lounge and dining services are available.

This will be the first time in 36 years that convenient train schedules have been offered in these busy travel markets. Here are some key points regarding this new schedule:

§ All Aboard Ohio and the Ohio Congressional Delegation wrote letters to Amtrak's president and board chairman asking for more usuable train services to Ohioans.

§ Amtrak is continuing to negotiate with freight railroad CSX Corp. to reschedule the daily westbound Lake Shore Limited (Train #48) over CSX’s tracks to serve Cleveland at a more convenient time than the current 3:30 a.m. arrival.

§ The new eastbound schedule allows business travelers from Chicago to travel by train to attend a 9 or 10 a.m. meeting in Cleveland without waking before 4 a.m. to catch a 6 a.m. flight in Chicago. Even if Train #49 is delayed up to 2 hours by frequent freight train traffic, business travelers can still make their meeting on-time thanks to the train’s 6:22 a.m. scheduled arrival in downtown Cleveland.

§ While Cleveland gains from the rescheduling, Toledo loses. The Lake Shore Limited will serve Toledo at less convenient times. Amtrak’s only other daily train service to Ohio, the Capitol Limited, also serves Toledo. This situation, as well as record Amtrak ridership in 2006 and volatile gasoline prices, underscore a need for more trains and thus more federal funding in partnership with states like Ohio.

§ Two bills (S.294 and H.R. 1300) were introduced to Congress to address America’s woefully under-capitalized rail system by unclogging railroad traffic bottlenecks, allowing Amtrak to acquire new train equipment and availing federal funding for new, short-distance services like those envisioned in the state’s emerging Ohio Hub Plan, including fast trains linking Cleveland - Columbus - Dayton - Cincinnati (3-C Corridor). All Aboard Ohio strongly encourages Gov. Ted Strickland and ODOT Director James Beasley to urge the Ohio Congressional Delegation to support both bills.

NEWS VIDEO/PHOTO OPPORTUNITY: Starting April 3^rd, 7 a.m. departure of Train #49 from Cleveland Amtrak Station, off South Marginal Road, between W. 3^rd and E. 9^th streets.

END

Also, the Plain Dealer is asking it's readers to share their thoughts about this improved service. So Tell him what you think:

Dear Readers,

Reporter Grant Segall is working on a story about AMTRAK's decision to restore daytime service from Cleveland to New York, with a planned 7 a.m. departure.

He is looking for people who might be likely to use the train, which takes 13 to 15 hours to get to New York, in order to avoid the hassles of air travel. If you think you might use this service, or even if you have a strong negative opinion of it, Grant would like to hear from you.

The story will run tomorrow, so if you are going to contact him, you will have to do it right away. Please include your name, city of residence and a daytime phone number, and send your remarks to gsegall@plaind.com.

Thank you,

Ted Diadiun

Reader Representative