(BLET National President Don M. Hahs issued the following statement on July 6.)
CLEVELAND, July 6 — The statement issued by U.S. Transportation Secretary Norm Mineta on July 5 regarding Amtrak and the Alaska Railroad is pure bunk.
The Alaska Railroad is primarily a freight carrier and comparisons between its miniscule passenger operations and Amtrak are completely without merit.
If Mineta wishes to compare apples to apples, then I suggest he visit France or Japan where passenger rail is fully funded and supported by their respective governments. Passenger rail in those countries should serve as a model of what Amtrak could be. Instead, the Bush Administration treats Amtrak like a redheaded stepchild.
In spite of Bush Administration attempts to kill Amtrak by not funding it, the U.S. House of Representatives is doing its best to see that Amtrak remains an important part of our nation’s transportation system.