(The following article by Bob Withers was posted on the Herald-Dispatch website on February 13.)
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — President Bush’s fiscal 2007 budget proposes $900 million for Amtrak, up from zero the year before.
“Hopefully, the administration recognized that Congress soundly rejected last year’s proposed zero, substituting $1.3 billion in its place,” said Ross Capon, executive director of the National Association of Railroad Passengers. “The administration is now expressing some flexibility to negotiate a more realistic budget.”
Amtrak operates the New York-Chicago Cardinal through Huntington and Ashland three days a week.
West Virginia’s congressional delegation was not pleased with the increase. Rep. Nick Rahall, D-W.Va., pointed out that the proposal represents a $415 million cut from what Amtrak received from Congress for fiscal 2006 and stipulates new conditions for receiving the money.
“Here we go again,” he said. “When are folks going to learn that Amtrak is essential to meeting the transportation needs of our citizens, particularly in the form of the Cardinal line that serves West Virginia?”