From lines on a map to more punctual trains

Before returning to Washington, DC after meeting with regional transportation leaders around the southwestern US, FRA Administrator Joe Szabo stopped in Salt Lake City to address the annual fall meeting of the National Association of Railroad Passengers (NARP, for which I serve on the national advisory body in an elected, volunteer position). His meetings in the region surrounded the unveiling of the Federal Railroad Administration’s (FRA first regional vision map based on the three levels of service it designated in 2010 as part of the planning process spurred by the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2008 (PRIIA). 

The Southwest Multi-State Rail Planning Study marks the first time that the triad of envisioned passenger service types — Core Express (top speed of over 125 mph on dedicated right of way), Regional (90 to 110 mph on dedicated track on shared right of way), and Emerging (79 mph on shared track) — have been laid out on a map. While it is gratifying to see agreement between FRA and the states on a vision for a more robust and interconnected network than the region currently has, these lines on a map will remain no more than that without the commitment of significant amounts of money over the long term on the part of both Congress and the state legislatures.

Among the noteworthy aspects of the Study’s map (PDF page 9), it:

• Designates the segment between San Luis Obispo and San Jose as an “Emerging/Feeder” route, in addition to the existing long-distance Coast Starlight
• Adds Los Angeles-Phoenix and San Diego-Las Vegas, NV lines (intersecting in the Inland Empire) as “Core Express,” in addition to Los Angeles-Oakland and Sacramento (the under-construction California High Speed Rail route). 
• Shows as “Potential Core Express” or “Blended Service” Las Vegas, NV to Reno, Salt Lake City/Ogden and Phoenix/Tucson. The Las Vegas-Reno and Las Vegas-Kingman, AZ lines would be the most novel routes compared to the service patterns of the last 60 years.
• Envisions “Emerging” services covering the California Zephyr and Southwest Chief routes Salt Lake City-Denver and Kingman/Flagstaff to Las Vegas, NM, as well as connecting the two (Las Vegas-Denver) and connecting Flagstaff to Phoenix.

After lauding the Planning Study, Szabo devoted the bulk of his remarks to plugging the Administration’s proposed Grow America Act, which would change the Highway Trust Fund into a Transportation Trust Fund and provide the first ever dedicated funding for intercity passenger rail capital investment and operations. He also addressed at length the topic that was foremost on the minds of NARP leaders, who are mostly frequent Amtrak riders: the shoddy on-time performance (OTP) of Amtrak trains, particularly long-distance trains, over the past year-plus.

Much to its credit, the Administration continues to beat the drum for what Szabo termed “PDF: predictable, dedicated funding” for passenger trains, in spite of the uphill struggle this idea still faces on Capitol Hill. Szabo also hailed the recent California Supreme Court decision allowing the state’s high-speed rail construction to move forward, and the reopening of Denver’s Union Station.

On the topic of chronic Amtrak delays, the Administrator said his OTP manager gives him regular reports, and that he personally engages with Class I railroad CEOs, as well as the Chair of the Surface Transportation Board (STB), on punctuality. “They’re not allowed to visit me without spending at least a minute or two talking about Amtrak OTP,” he proclaimed. He praised NARP’s online tool allowing passengers to report their experiences on late trains to their Members of Congress and to the STB. This tool has generated about 1,300 letters to Congress in the space of a week.

“[Amtrak’s plague of delays] is all the more reason we need to have predictable, dedicated funding for rail improvement projects,” Szabo said. “As much progress as we’ve made during this Administration in advancing and improving intercity passenger rail, in too many places, we still haven’t been able to make the investments necessary to eliminate choke-points, ensure necessary capacity, and provide the public the reliable travel experience they deserve. Nor has Amtrak had the predictability necessary to properly execute a strong capital improvement plan.”

It is encouraging to hear that passengers’ frustrations with late trains have caught the attention of senior-level officials in the federal government, and to see a bit of improvement this week, perhaps as a result of the “demand letter” that STB Chair Dan Elliott sent to Norfolk Southern CEO Wick Moorman (to which he responded). But it’s also frustrating that the Administration’s calls for a more rational level of investment in bringing some more balance to our transportation system will likely go unheeded as long as they remain associated with only one party in the highly polarized environment in the capital. Unless the national political dynamic changes significantly, the only way to break the impasse is by bringing the loud, clear voices of more citizens to bear. 

Perhaps passengers’ frustrations will coalesce into a silver lining to the cloud hanging over Amtrak, if it continues to drive them to write, call and tweet at their elected and appointed officials. There are few better motivators for the sustained citizen action needed to achieve a more sensible transportation funding and development policy for the 21st Century.