Amtrak

Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner
Commentary

‘Dear Mr. Tilley’

I am responding on behalf of Anthony Coscia, Amtrak’s Chairman, to your Feb. 13 letter regarding Amtrak’s long-distance fleet. Since I already addressed many of your assertions (in bold italics below) in

“FTA looks forward to working with these communities to advance transit projects that will provide new transit options,” FTA Acting Administrator Veronica Vanterpool said March 11.

USDOT: $3B to Support 9 Rail Transit Construction Projects

The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) on March 11 recommended that nine large rail transit-related projects in five states receive approximately $3 billion in federal support for construction as part of President Biden’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 Budget Request to Congress.

Commentary

FRA L-D Study: Two Outreach Issues

On Feb. 21, I reported on 15 potential long-distance routes that Amtrak could operate someday, in theory, anyway. These routes resulted from a two-year evaluation and selection process sponsored by the Federal

Senate Budget Committee Advances REEF Act

The Senate Budget Committee on March 6 voted unanimously to advance the bipartisan Railroad Employee Equity and Fairness (REEF) Act, which aims to protect railroad employees from cuts to unemployment and sickness insurance and eliminate mandated cuts to the Railroad Retirement Board’s Unemployment Insurance Account.

TriMet photo

Transit Briefs: Amtrak, TriMet, Metrolinx

Amtrak increases Northeast Regional service. Also, TriMet celebrates the opening of the Gateway North MAX station; and Metrolinx cancels a deal with Vandyk Properties for a new station and transit-oriented community.

“The tremendous growth in ridership is a result of the substantial investments North Carolina and Virginia are making to expand and improve passenger rail,” Amtrak Vice President Ray Lang said on Feb. 28. “Customers are taking advantage of a sustainable way to travel to the many destinations our network offers.” (Amtrak Photograph)

Transit Briefs: Amtrak, NYMTA, Metrolinx

Virginia and North Carolina are home Amtrak’s busiest stations in the Southeast. Also, the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) provides an update on expanding Amtrak’s Heartland Flyer; New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s (MTA) Chief Accessibility Officer earns Presidential Volunteer Award; and Metrolinx’s maintenance and storage facility for the Finch West LRT project in Toronto receives LEED Silver Certification.

(Image: Brightline)

Transit Briefs: Amtrak, NJ Transit, SEPTA, Brightline

Amtrak Northeast Corridor (NEC) trains transition to fixed forward and backward seating. Also, Gov. Phil Murphy’s $55.9 billion budget includes a plan for NJ Transit by taxing businesses; the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) Transit Police Department upgrades to CODY Systems’ cloud-based Public Safety Suite; and Brightline ranks No. 59 on Inc. Magazine’s list of the Southeast region’s fastest-growing private companies.