(The following story by Casey Ross appeared on the Boston Herald website on September 16.)
BOSTON — Amtrak would be forced to shut down operations in February under a budget proposed by the Bush administration that would bankrupt the cash-strapped rail service within months, officials said.
“This appropriations bill continues the conscious, deliberate underfunding of Amtrak, and it has to be stopped,” U.S. Rep. James McGovern (D-Worcester) said yesterday. “It’s ridiculous.”
Under a proposed budget before Congress, the Bush administration would cut the agency’s funding request in half, giving it only $900 million of the $1.8 billion it says it needs for the next fiscal year.
Clint Black, a spokesman for the rail service, said Bush’s proposal would force Amtrak to begin a wholesale shutdown in February, although he noted negotiations over the budget are only beginning in Congress.
Black said Amtrak’s northeast corridor needs repairs to both the electrical system and several older bridges that could cause significant delays if not fixed.
Republicans in Congress have blasted the rail service as a waste of taxpayer dollars that must be reformed before its budget demands are met.