WASHINGTON — Conflicts between the nation’s freight railroads and Amtrak contributed to failures by the passenger service to expand its business to help boost its sagging finances, a congressional study found on Tuesday.
A wire service reports that the General Accounting Office, the investigative arm of Congress, said Amtrak and freight rail services were unable to work out deals in recent years to fund capital improvements, like track and signal upgrades, and track access.
After several years of cutting service to save money, Amtrak proposed 15 new routes in 2000 as part of a growth strategy to add much needed revenue.
But the railroad canceled nine of the routes before they could be put into service. Another failed and three have been delayed. Only two were launched and remain in place.
Some of the routes were canceled because Amtrak overestimated how much money could be made on them hauling mail and cargo. But others fell victim to conflicts between passenger and freight rail interests.
For instance, the two businesses could not agree on Amtrak’s expanded use of tracks owned by freight companies, which said some of the lines were already congested. The freight companies also felt Amtrak’s plans to carry mail and cargo on their tracks might hurt their business.
The expanded service was part of Amtrak’s plans to stem its staggering losses and operate without federal subsidies by the end of this year. That goal has been abandoned as Congress considers a $1.2 billion aid request from Amtrak to maintain current services.