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Fighting to Keep Amtrak on Track

Posted on: Monday, 14 November 2005, 03:01 CST

By Quinlan, Brian

TRENTON

Plans to spin off the Northeast Corridor line worry the state and rail advocates

NEW JERSEY COMMUTERS and transportation officials are anxiously eyeing Washington, D.C., where directors of Amtrak seek to make the most sweeping changes to the federally subsidized passenger railroad since it began service in 1971.

Under a plan that became public two weeks ago, Amtrak would create a wholly owned subsidiary to run the 450-mile Northeast Corridor line between Washington and Boston. That would open the door for Amtrak to ask cash-strapped states like New Jersey to help fund what is by far the busiest stretch of the railroad's system. An estimated 100,000 New Jersey commuters ride Amtrak to work each day.

Critics of a spinoff fear that it would be the first step toward breaking up and privatizing the money-losing Amtrak system, which has piled up more than $3.5 billion of long-term debt.

Amtrak has already begun to reduce its New Jersey service. At the end of this month the railroad will discontinue its popular rush- hour Clocker trains between Philadelphia and New York City. NJ Transit plans to add new weekday express service to and from New York to take up the slack.

Erin Phalon, a spokesperson for the state Department of Transportation (DOT), says New Jersey shouldn't have to contribute financially to Amtrak because the "system is in disrepair." Moreover, she says, states have been systematically shut out of the decision-making process with regard to the railroad.

"We would hope this would be done in a more transparent manner," Phalon says of the proposed spinoff. "We believe that before the resolution is adopted in January, we should be consulted." Kelley Heck, a spokesperson for acting Governor Richard Codey, says Codey shares the DOT's concerns.

Also worried is the National Association of Railroad Passengers (NARP), aWashington, D.C.-based organization that lobbies for improvements in the passenger-rail system. NARP assistant director David Johnson says spinning off the Northeast Corridor would depart from previous Amtrak assurances that it had no plans for such a move and suggests a hidden agenda. "Our concern is that there are ulterior motives and this may be part of the Bush administratioris plan to make Amtrak privately owned," Johnson says.

Amtrak says the Northeast Corridor is costly to maintain and separating it from the rest of the system would make it easier to turn to the states to fund the Washington-Boston service. Amtrak spokesman Clifford Black says the railroad spends some $400 million a year to maintain the Northeast line.

"We would hope this would be done in a more transparent manner."

Erin Phalon

Spokesperson

New Jersey Department of Transportation

E-mail to bquinlan@njbiz.com

Copyright Snowden Publications, Inc. Oct 24, 2005

Source: NJBIZ

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