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Commentary

Could the worm be turning for Amtrak?

Legendary Baltimore Orioles manager Earl Weaver etched his illustrious baseball career and winning record with the three-run homer. Were Amtrak a Major League Baseball team, its success would be measured, instead, by infield hits. But Amtrak may have hit one long ball this week when new House Rail Subcommittee Chairman Jeff Denham (R-Calif.) conceded that Amtrak passenger service on the Northeast Corridor and on state-supported corridors is profitable and efficient.

Darcy

House freight panel to host roundtable with DOT, Army Corps of Engineers

The House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee’s Panel on 21st Century Freight Transportation, chaired by Rep. John J. Duncan, Jr. (R-Tenn.), will hold a roundtable meeting on May 15 to examine what efforts the Department of Transportation and the Army Corps of Engineers have made to coordinate freight transportation policy, and what challenges exist for greater coordination among federal departments and agencies.

House T&I Committee convenes panel to study freight transport

The House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure has convened a new panel—the “Panel on 21st Century Freight Transportation”—which is “tasked with examining the current state of freight transportation in the United States and how improving freight transportation can strengthen the U.S. economy.”

Competitive bidding for corridor passenger rail service in play

Among priorities of the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee is reauthorization of the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2008 (PRIIA), portions of which are a growth hormone for state-subsidized intercity passenger rail corridors that are separate from Amtrak’s long-distance network, Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor, and commuter rail operations.
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LaHood, in testimony, defends HSR

Ignoring or perhaps outright challenging Congress’ decision to eliminate U.S. high speed rail funding, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood on Tuesday vigorously defended the concept in testimony before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.