INDIANAPOLIS — Beech Grove rail workers who were laid off in February received good news this week as Congress moved to give Amtrak financial relief, reports the Indianapolis Star.
The Senate Appropriations Committee approved $1.2 billion in spending on the passenger rail company for the next three years. Beech Grove stands to receive a portion of the $1.2 billion if the bill passes, Sen. Evan Bayh, D-Ind., said Friday.
“This money will help bring laid-off workers at the Beech Grove wreck-repair facility back to work,” Bayh said. “This is a major breakthrough for Hoosier workers whose livelihoods depend on the wreck repair facility’s operation.”
The Beech Grove Maintenance Facility, the largest in the country serving Amtrak trains, laid off 228 workers — about a fourth of its work force — in February after Amtrak cut 1,000 jobs nationally as part of cost-saving measures.
Amtrak spokeswoman Kathleen Cantillon called this week’s activity a “positive first step” toward saving the company. If the spending bill passes the Senate and House and is signed by President Bush, Amtrak will decide how much money to allocate to the Beech Grove facility.
About $840 million of federal money would pay for capital investment, which includes wreck-repair services at three sites, including Beech Grove.
Amtrak also received $205 million in emergency spending Thursday to operate through September and avoid the first systemwide shutdown in its 31-year history.
Dennis Hodges, executive director of the Indiana High Speed Rail Association, called efforts to relieve Amtrak an encouraging sign for the state’s rail system, which has lost 600 jobs in the past two years. The state plans a $1 billion expansion that would add 530 miles of track — a program that depends on a healthy Amtrak, Hodges said.
“We need to keep Amtrak in service to give high-speed passenger rail a face,” Hodges said.