(The following article by Eric Anderson was posted on the Albany Times-Union website on September 16.)
RENSSELAER, N.Y. — While Amtrak commuters won’t get a fare increase next week, a policy change could cause major headaches for frequent travelers to New York City.
Amtrak said Thursday it was delaying indefinitely a plan to hike fares that would have taken effect Tuesday. But it will go ahead with plans to require reservations on all Empire Corridor trains.
Commuters on the busy route between the Capital Region and New York City will need reservations before they board. No longer will they be able to catch the next available train.
“I commute to New York City one day a week and rarely know which train I will take back to Albany, as do most of my colleagues, on what is basically a commuter line,” one customer, Dick Silber, e-mailed the Times Union.
Said Bruce Becker, president of the Empire State Passengers Association, a rail advocacy group, “We’re still deeply concerned at the lack of flexibility for business travelers with the introduction of all-reserved service.”
But Becker and others were pleased that Amtrak was delaying a fare increase. While the passenger railroad had said the increase would be in the 5 percent to 7 percent range, Amtrak officials had declined to talk about specific fares.
And the railroad had said it was reducing the discounts on its monthly Smart Passes, which allowed unlimited rides. Some commuters feared they would see effective increases of 40 percent or more.
“We’re pleased Amtrak is recognizing the enormity of some of the proposed fare increases and is taking steps to address the needs of the passengers, with particular emphasis on those who use monthly passes,” Becker said.
U.S. Rep. John Sweeney, R-Clifton Park, who had criticized the fare increase in a letter to David Gunn, Amtrak’s president and chief executive officer, also was pleased by the move, said Sweeney spokeswoman Melissa Carlson.
“This was penalizing the people who are their bread and butter,” she said of the planned increases.
Sweeney, in a later interview, said the reservations requirement was still a matter of concern.
“I don’t know what the rationale is. I assume it’s a security issue, but I’m not positive,” he said. He said he planned to talk with Amtrak officials as early as today.
Other elected officials also hailed the fare move.
“Thousands of people ride Amtrak between New York City and the Capital Region every week and at a time when Amtrak’s critics are getting louder, this fare increase was shortsighted,” said U.S. Sen. Charles E. Schumer, D-NY. “We should be doing everything possible to increase ridership, and expand service — not contract it.”
Amtrak had blamed the fare increase on rising fuel costs, which had reached record levels in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.
Amtrak also said it sells just 1,989 Smart Passes each month on the Northeastern Corridor, which runs from Boston to Washington, D.C., and 178 on the Empire Corridor. These are the customers who would have seen the steepest fare increases.
“I welcome them taking their time to do this in a common-sense manner,” said one of those Smart Pass customers, Tim Coetzee of Colonie. “I understand they have the same increased costs everybody else has.”