Mon, Apr 08, 2002 page21

• Amtrak tells US states 18 trains may be halted

  • BLOOMBERG
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  Amtrak told US governors that the rail service may halt 18 overnight trains with the highest losses as of Sept. 30 unless Congress more than doubles its annual subsidy to US$1.2 billion.

  "If funding falls below Amtrak's budget [request], it is likely that certain trains will be discontinued," George Warrington, president of the rail service, said in a letter to 46 states. "Some trains require more direct subsidy than others."

  Amtrak lost a record US$1.07 billion last year and has no funding after the 2002 fiscal year ends in September. Keeping the subsidy at US$521 million, the same as this year, would only cover losses in the Northeast, Warrington told Congress last month.

  The 18 trains Amtrak has already identified for potential cuts include well-known names such as the City of New Orleans, made famous in a song recorded by Arlo Guthrie. Most of the trains mainly run on overnight routes across the country or between the Northeast and Florida. Lawmakers in some states including Montana and North Dakota already have intervened in an effort to keep Amtrak from reducing service to isolated towns.

  "Given the demands on every budget dollar, securing US$1.2 billion for Amtrak is going to be a steep hill to climb,'' said Senator Tom Carper, a Delaware Democrat and former Amtrak board member. "Supporters of passenger rail service -- mayors, governors, passengers -- are going to have to raise their voices in the coming months for the President and Congress to hear."

  Congress is considering at least eight bills that would fund Amtrak after Oct. 1, including some of those measures that would trim overnight trains or find private companies to operate them.

  President George W. Bush hasn't presented a formal proposal to fund service after Oct. 1 and hasn't said when that plan would be submitted. No votes on any Amtrak bill have been scheduled.

  The overnight trains have the highest losses, according to documents released by the Amtrak Reform Council, a panel appointed by Congress. The biggest loss was US$347 per rider on Sunset Limited that runs between Los Angeles and Orlando, Florida.

  The City of New Orleans, a train described in a song written by the late Steve Goodman about the 1,490km run from Chicago to the Gulf Coast, lost US$23.7 million last year. The Chicago-Seattle Empire Builder lost US$45.4 million. That train was christened after the nickname of James Hill, who built the Great Northern Railroad from St. Paul to Seattle in the 1880s.

  Amtrak "did the right thing" by announcing the possible cuts, said Ross Capon, director of the National Association of Railroad Passengers advocacy group. "They have to walk a tightrope between keeping public officials informed of the dire possibilities without scaring off business."

  Amtrak will make decisions about route cuts after Congress finishes the appropriations process this fall, the letter said.

  "The uncertainties associated with the legislative process mean that Amtrak must prepare for the possibility that it will not receive an appropriation sufficient to keep all current services in place," Warrington's letter said. The notice was sent to governors in every state except South Dakota, Wyoming, Alaska and Hawaii, where the railroad doesn't run any trains.

  Amtrak was created in 1971 to take over passenger service from freight railroads and has generated at least US$23 billion in losses since then, never making a profit.
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