(The Department of Transportation issued the following news release on May 18.)
WASHINGTON — Last year, Amtrak lost more than $908 million on its 15 long distance routes, yet there is little evidence to believe that the company will do anything to reverse the massive losses in taxpayer funds unless reforms are passed by Congress this year, U.S. Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Mineta said Wednesday during a visit to Amtrak’s station along the Sunset Limited line in Mobile, AL.
“Every year, Amtrak squanders millions to run long distance trains in a way that no longer makes sense given today’s travel environment,” Mineta said during a news conference.
Secretary Mineta made the appearance in Alabama as part of National Transportation Week to call for reform of Amtrak. This visit is part of his push for legislation to save inter-city passenger rail through federal financial support, a partnership with the states, more local control of service and schedules, and competition among operators.
Standing alongside the empty tracks, Mineta said the Sunset Limited loses $466 dollars per passenger, more than any of Amtrak’s other long distance lines. He added that the line lost more than $44 million last year alone, likening the losses to neglect of the entire system.
He also observed the movement for reform is growing, noting that even Amtrak now “admits that the railroad must be reformed to survive.”
Secretary Mineta stressed that long distance trains could and should continue to play an important role in the nation’s transportation system. He cited the Alaska Railroad as an example of a company that has developed a successful approach to long distance trains. The Alaska Railroad is profitable because it has found a way to meet the needs of local travelers while bringing cruise ship passengers inland, Mineta noted.
“The Alaska Railroad’s model works, bringing profits to the company and travel and tourism dollars to landlocked communities,” Mineta noted. “There is no reason that Amtrak couldn’t embrace the same entrepreneurial spirit and find a better business model for running long distance trains if it chooses. Our transportation needs are not one size fits all.”
Secretary Mineta said the problem, though, is that Amtrak “is not operating like a business,” adding that critics of reform don’t understand that “Congress can’t buy its way” out of a broken model that relies on a yearly check from taxpayers.
Amtrak was created by Congress in 1971 as a for-profit corporation, but has never made money from its operations.
Secretary Mineta said the Administration’s plan would provide federal matching grants to the states for rail infrastructure improvements, give states the responsibility of operating the lines, allow other operators to compete with Amtrak to offer service, preserve Amtrak as an operating company, and require that all routes be subject to sound economic measures.
Secretary Mineta pledged to continue to work with Congress to pass a package of reforms this year, calling such legislation “vital to saving Amtrak and putting passenger rail travel back on track in America.”
Secretary Mineta’s visit to Mobile, AL was the fifth in a series of stops he plans to make this week in the southeast and along the Gulf Coast in celebration of National Transportation Week. On Monday, Mineta visited North and South Carolina. Yesterday he was in Florida for stops in Jacksonville and Tallahassee. He is scheduled to make an appearance in Baton Rouge later today and Fourchon, LA tomorrow before returning to the northeast tomorrow night.
The Amtrak On-Time Performance and Losses for FY 2004 can be found at http://www.dot.gov/affairs/AmtrakOn-TimePerformanceChart.htm.