(Reuters circulated the following article by John Crawley on February 2.)
WASHINGTON — The Bush administration’s decision to propose no operating money for Amtrak next year is the starkest signal yet that U.S. transportation planners are serious about dramatically altering or dismantling the troubled rail line, industry experts said on Wednesday.
The White House budget to be unveiled on Monday will propose no operating subsidy for the nation’s only city-to-city passenger service, although it will include $360 million for maintenance and to operate commuter lines in several states if the railroad were to shut down, sources have told Reuters.
While Amtrak officials had no comment on the proposal, which could be rejected by Congress, they have long maintained the railroad cannot survive without massive subsidies. It almost shut down in 2002 over a fight over federal assistance.
Amtrak has received a federal contribution without interruption each year since its creation in 1971. Its aid for this fiscal year is $1.2 billion, about half of which funds operations. The other half supports capital costs.
Other administrations have proposed no operating funds for Amtrak in the past but President Bush has previously not taken that step despite White House criticism of what it sees as Amtrak’s bloated and inefficient operation.
Perhaps more importantly than the operating subsidy proposal, the administration wants to place the $360 million for commuter lines with the Transportation Department’s Surface Transportation Board.
This maneuver, allowed by a 2004 law, would ensure commuter operations could continue in case Amtrak were to cease operations. The move to guarantee commuter service would remove leverage that supporters of the national railroad have used to prevent extreme cuts and keep Amtrak fully operational.
“UNDERMINING” THE RAILROAD
Sen. Tom Carper, a Delaware Democrat, and Amtrak supporter said the administration’s plan “will never fly” in Congress.
“Unfortunately, this attack on Amtrak shows that the administration has no real plan for reforming the railroad other than a vain attempt to undermine it,” Carper said.
However, a veteran congressional aide with deep knowledge of the budget process said that at a time of record deficits it would be hard for supporters on Capitol Hill to win a big subsidy in the Republican-controlled Congress after a zero proposal from the White House.
A Transportation Department spokesman refused to discuss budget matters ahead of next week. But he said that the administration was committed to seeing Amtrak closely examine its route structure and its business practices.
The administration would like states – especially along the flagship Northeast Corridor between Washington and Boston — to assume greater responsibility for city-to-city rail service. It has also floated the idea of dismantling Amtrak’s universal control of rail operations and transforming it into an operating company that could bid on routes.
Amtrak’s systemwide cash loss has exceeded $635 million in the past three years, but passenger revenue nearly supports operations on the popular Northeast Corridor, where it runs its only high-speed train.
Ross Capon, executive director of the National Association of Railroad Passengers, an interest group, praised the company’s austerity measures and ridership growth in recent years under the company’s president, David Gunn.
“Even if Congress trashes this zero proposal as it has previous ones, the proposal would harm employee morale and perhaps decrease ridership because of public concern about the elimination of Amtrak service,” Capon said.