(The following story by Jon Hilkevitch appeared on the Chicago Tribune website on February 14.)
CHICAGO — Metra and other railroads would compete with Amtrak to run long-distance passenger trains under a concept the nation’s top transportation official announced today in Chicago to replace the “fundamentally irrational” intercity rail system.
In addition, control of Union Station would be transferred from Amtrak to a local authority, U.S. Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta said.
But the outline Mineta presented would increase the financial pressure on already cash-strapped state governments to invest heavily in intercity passenger rail or lose the service.
He declined to say how much the federal government would invest in upgrading stations, tracks and trains—only that the federal contribution would be capped at 50 percent. “If there is no local share, then we do not contribute,” Mineta said.
The Bush administration’s overall proposal is aimed at ending Amtrak’s monopoly on routes, offering rail service that would attract more riders and getting the federal government out of the business of subsidizing operations, Mineta said. States or the new rail provider they contract with would be responsible for subsidizing money-losing routes, which accounts for essentially the entire system.
The plan, called the Passenger Rail Investment Reform Act, is almost identical to legislation that the administration presented in 2003. It stalled in Congress.
This time, the administration proposes to eliminate operating subsidies to Amtrak in fiscal 2006 as “a wakeup call for the need for reform,” Mineta said. He rejected critics’ charges that President Bush’s real motivation is to kill Amtrak.
“I’ve got news for you. If I wanted to kill Amtrak, I wouldn’t have to lift a finger,” Mineta said at a news conference at Chicago’s Union Station. “The system as it stands now is dying, and everyone knows it.”
Mineta said the federal government’s money would be more wisely spent on transit projects put forward by the states. He cited Washington’s $345 million investment in a rail line that runs from Seattle to Vancouver, British Columbia, which he said has seen ridership grow more than 300 percent in recent years.
Critics said the Bush plan is flawed and that the administration failed to do its homework.
“The most basic inquiry would have told the administration that the State of Illinois is not in a position to pick up the subsidy for Amtrak,” U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said in a telephone interview. “Secretary Mineta didn’t come here with a plan. He came here with an excuse for this terrible budget decision.”
Brad Hahn, a spokesman for Republican House Speaker Dennis Hastert, who has supported providing more for Amtrak than the president has budgeted in recent years, said the proposal was still in its infancy.
“It’s just too early to start scaring people about this,” Hahn said. “This is just the beginning of the process, and things can and do change.”
Last year, for example, Bush proposed cutting Amtrak’s budget to $900 million for fiscal year 2005, but Congress provided $1.2 billion. The administration’s fiscal year 2006 budget unveiled last week provides no operating funds for Amtrak.
“Every year they make the same proposal and some of it is just ideological,” Democratic Sen. Barack Obama said today in Chicago. “It strikes me that we should make a greater investment in upgrading our rail system rather than eliminating the subsidies that already exist.”
In Illinois, Amtrak employs 2,000 workers, served more than 3 million riders last year and runs 50 daily trains. Last year, Amtrak spent $56 million on Illinois operations and received another $12 million from the state for its intrastate routes, which serve 30 communities.
Dozens of protesters gathered inside Union Station’s main hall during Mineta’s remarks, holding signs that read “Fund Amtrak” and “American Needs Trains.”
Among the protesters was Gary Stupka, an Amtrak conductor for 30 years, who said the administration’s proposal not only threatens his job but jeopardizes a valuable service for people who live far from airports.
“For them, we’re the only game in town,” Stupka said.
Mineta declined to say how much the administration would earmark in matching funds if Congress does pass the measure, but said it likely would be roughly the same amount the government now spends on Amtrak.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.