PORTLAND, Maine — Although proposals in Washington to restructure Amtrak could doom some passenger train routes in the Northeast, the Downeaster would stand a strong chance of surviving, the Portland Press Herald reports.
The more pressing question, however, is whether the Maine-to-Boston train can operate this summer if Amtrak runs out of money this month. That possibility puts the Downeaster under the same threat as other passenger services across the nation.
Amtrak will shut down operations — the Downeaster included — if it is unable to secure a $200 million loan, Amtrak officials said Friday.
“In that sense, the Downeaster is no different than any other train we operate,” said Bill Epstein, an Amtrak spokesman. “If we shut the system down, we shut the entire system down.”
Amtrak President David Gunn said he will start turning away passengers and moving trains to storage next week unless the company gets a grant or a loan. Amtrak’s next step after shutting down would be to file for bankruptcy protection, he said.
That shutdown threat is part of a long-simmering policy dispute in Washington over the future of the nation’s chronically indebted passenger rail service.
The Bush administration is concerned that Congress will increase funding for Amtrak without addressing any of the core problems that have produced this crisis, Secretary of Transportation Norman Mineta said in a speech at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce on Thursday. Unless Amtrak follows the administration’s restructuring plan, Mineta said, it will oppose giving Amtrak any more than $521 million this year, the amount Amtrak got last year.
Both Amtrak and Department of Transportation Inspector General Kenneth Mead have said $521 million would allow Amtrak to do little more than shut down.
In an effort to keep operating through the summer, Amtrak is asking the administration to guarantee the loan of at least $200 million. If that fails, it will ask Congress for more money.
In the meantime, Amtrak is running out of cash right now, and it has had trouble tapping its existing line of credit because lenders are unsure how long it can remain in business.
On Friday, Standard & Poor’s downgraded Amtrak’s credit rating to the lowest investment-grade status.
Sen. Olympia J. Snowe, a Maine Republican who sits on the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, sent a letter Friday to President Bush asking him to authorize the loan guarantees.
“In order to avoid the loss of rail as a viable transportation option, we must give Amtrak a fighting chance,” Snowe said in the letter. “The future of passenger rail is literally at stake. Not only would a shutdown leave passengers stranded, it would represent a devastating blow to Amtrak’s reputation and the future of passenger rail in America.”
Amtrak has warned about shutdowns in the past, and Congress has responded by finding the money to keep the trains running. The company has never had a prolonged systemwide shutdown in its 31-year history. Political observers say it’s unlikely Congress would allow the system to be shut down now.
However the short-term crisis is handled, the bigger question — the long-term future of Amtrak — would still remain in doubt.
This week, the administration released a plan that would allow some routes to be operated under franchise by a non-Amtrak entity. The federal government would continue to pay some capital costs for passenger train service but would provide no operating subsidies. According to the plan, states would be expected to cover operating costs under new “partnerships” with the federal government.
Under that scenario, the Downeaster would fare better than many other passenger routes, said Ron Roy, director of Maine’s Office of Passenger Transportation.
The Downeaster has proven to be popular, Roy said. Its income has exceeded expectations, and the 114-mile trip to Boston is short and relatively inexpensive.
In contrast, Amtrak trains in Vermont and New York state have fewer passengers and much longer routes. Long-distance trains that travel on freight lines through western states are even more costly.
In addition, Roy said, the Downeaster is administered by the Northern New England Passenger Rail Authority, which has a contract with Amtrak to provide train service. The rail authority is the kind of regional group envisioned by the Bush plan, he said.
Assuming Amtrak keeps operating, the rail authority’s contract runs until December 2004. Until then, no matter how Amtrak restructures it is obligated to provide service, Roy said.