(The following story by John R. Pulliam appeared on The Register-Mail website on September 26.)
GALESBURG, Ill. — U.S. Reps. Phil Hare, D-Rock Island, and Ray LaHood, R-Peoria, joined a bipartisan group of Illinois delegation members led by U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., in asking the three major freight railroads that own tracks in Illinois to come up with a plan to improve the on-time performance of Amtrak trains to at least 85 percent.
In a letter to the presidents and CEOs of BNSF, Canadian National and Union Pacific, the Illinois members pointed out that while Amtrak’s revenue and ridership have increased dramatically over the past two years, on-time performance has been only 44 percent this summer.
“These delays not only continually make passengers late and frustrated, they cost Amtrak money,” the Illinois members wrote. “Earlier this year, the Department of Transportation found that improving Amtrak’s on-time performance to 85 percent would result in a $136.6 million net gain for the company. This level of savings could be used to modernize tracks here in Illinois and fund additional passenger train service from Chicago to Rockford, the Quad Cities and Peoria.”
A report issued Thursday by the U.S. Department of Transportation found that “improper dispatching practices and poor operating discipline by freight railroads are among the key reasons why Amtrak trains suffer poor on-time performance on tracks operated by those host freight railroads. Over 70 percent of the miles traveled by Amtrak trains are operated over tracks owned by other railroads.”
In the letter from the Illinois Congressional members, they wrote, “Amtrak ridership along your lines in Illinois has broken revenue and ridership (records) for 27 straight months. Gas prices are luring thousands of people from their cars and onto trains. And the looming cutbacks in airline service will only increase the demand for efficient, cost-effective and reliable Amtrak service.”
The letter blames poor track conditions, aging signal systems and management decisions favoring freight over passenger trains for continuing to create unacceptable delays on Amtrak routes, and raise questions regarding traffic control and its effect on the safety of Amtrak operations.
BNSF spokesman Steve Forsberg this past summer defended the line’s efforts. He said BNSF gives Amtrak priority over freight trains, adding that problems are exacerbated in the West, where many areas have single, rather than the double tracks common in this area.
State Rep. Don Moffitt, R-Gilson, said the state may play a part in improving Amtrak’s on-track performance.
“If there’s a capital bill, we’re going to try to get some additional sidings so a freight train can pull off and the passenger trains can go around,” Moffitt said.
BNSF plans to replace about 22,000 railroad crossties on 22 miles of track in west-central Illinois in late October. The work was scheduled for August but had to be delayed because of flooding. BNSF officials said the work is expected to improve both service reliability and ride quality.