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Empire Passengers |
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State Association |
NEWSLETTER OF THE EMPIRE STATE PASSENGERS ASSOCIATION
The following is a summary of our association's
bi-monthly newsletter. All ESPA members receive the unabridged version
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To allow passengers at smaller stations to board Amtrak trains at car floor level without expensive high level platforms, ESPA has proposed a ramp similar to those used for handicapped passengers on some suburban lines. The ramp would be set far enough back to avoid contact with swaying cars on passing freight trains, and would use a simple "drawbridge" device to allow passengers to cross the gap to the passenger car vestibule.
ESPA's Frank Barry presented this proposal at the Rail Passenger Council meeting in New York on November 27th. Amtrak representatives said they would pass the idea on to the corporation's engineering department.
The ramp would require engineers to spot the train precisely, but it would make the boarding process far easier for passengers with luggage, small children or arthritis. It could also meet requirements for handicapped passengers, avoiding time consuming, labor intensive procedures required for portable lifts now used on low level platforms.
After reviewing several proposals, ESPA's officers decided at a recent meeting to contract with Joe Landry of New York Capitol Consultants, Inc., to represent the organization before the state government. Joe Landry served as Counsel to the Assembly Transportation Committee in the early 1990's, and later as Counsel and Chief of Staff to the Assembly Majority Leader. During the early 1990's he worked closely with ESPA when funds for rail were included in the "Locked Box" Transportation Fund that became law in 1993. Several rail projects funded then--including the Albany-Schenectady doubletracking and enlargement of the Depew station--were suggested by ESPA. At that time Landry was a lead negotiator for the Assembly.
In 1997 he joined New York Capitol Consultants, a government affairs and public relations firm established by Chris McGrath. Since then he has represented various transportation and citizen interests including Mothers Against Drunk Driving, Thrifty Rent a Car System and the New York State Bus Distributors Association.
ESPA officers believe contracting for professional representation in Albany will turn out to be a major step in our organization's growth and effectiveness, perhaps equal to our 5 Year Plan and the Marist Institute Survey. An experienced representative well connected in the legislature, the Department of Transportation and the Governor's office should bring accomplishments beyond the reach of our volunteer officers working from a distance in their spare time.
Joe Landry will address ESPA members at the annual meeting on March 3rd. In the meantime he will work to advance our 5 year plan objectives in the budget process. ESPA officers would like to thank the Association's members who have made this possible through membership fees and extra contributions.
Frank Barry
The bond issue would have provided $10 million for this project. Without it, the commuter rail project has only $1.3 million to match approximately $5 million in federal funds obtained by prior Congressman Jerry Solomon. This would be enough for the Schenectady route, but the Mechanicville route, which is 11 miles longer, would likely require significant upgrading; it has not hosted passenger trains since 1978. CDTA is sponsoring a survey to assess demand for service on this route.
Frank Barry
Amtrak passengers made 1,465,833 trips on New York State trains in fiscal year 2000 (which ended September 30). All three services recorded the highest ridership since ESPA began keeping records in 1982.
The Empire Corridor carried 1,320,537 (for a 4.6% increase over fiscal 1999). The Adirondack carried 100,707 (+4.4%). And the Ethan Allen carried 44,589 (+3.7%).
Empire Corridor (New York-Albany-Niagara Falls) ridership has grown 50% since 1996, when ridership fell to 978,930 after a three year decline. Since that year New York-Albany weekday service has grown from 9 to 14 daily trains, a forth daily round-trip to Niagara Falls has been restored, and service has been extended to Rutland.
As of press time, the first turboliner trainset rebuilt by Super Steel still needed to prove itself at 125MPH, and still needed to make a round trip to Niagara Falls. "We can't do the 125MPH test when it's snowing" according to one government official, "because the men who must guard the grade crossings will all be needed for driving snowplows".
Trips for display at rail conferences in Richmond, Va. and Indianapolis in November and December generated a lot of interest in the train, but set back the timetable for actually getting it into service. Delays have also resulted from problems with the transmission in one of the power cars. No one will predict exactly when the train will enter service, but it is hoped this may happen by ESPA's March 3rd Annual Meeting.
In the meantime, planning is going ahead for the second trainset. Department of Transportation officials have consulted Amtrak conductors and others who actually operate and work on the trains to get their reaction to the first turbo. "We got some very practical suggestions," a DOT official told ESPA. This may lead to changes for the second train and possibly even retrofits for the first.
Frank Barry
Largely due to strong opposition from Senator John McCain (R-Arizona), who chairs the powerful Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, the bill (S.1900/H.R. 3700) was not included in the final omnibus budget package that Congress approved December 15.
McCain’s opposition is not a great surprise, as he very reluctantly supported the 1997 Amtrak reauthorization bill which gave Amtrak the multi-billion dollar tax rebate it desperately needed at that time. When he spoke on the Senate floor before he voted in the fall of 1997, McCain warned he “…would be ready to pull the plug on Amtrak…” if Amtrak could not survive on the funding provided then.
McCain held to his word. The bill’s failure places Amtrak in a precarious position as 2001 rolls around. The HSRIA would have provided, for the first time, a dedicated, steady, federal share of capital funding for passenger rail projects. A state match of 20 percent also was required. If high-speed passenger rail service is ever to expand beyond the Washington-New York-Boston corridor, such a federal partnership will still be necessary.
The battle will be harder in 2001, with several strong supporters of Amtrak departing. Passenger rail champions like Senators Moynihan, Lautenberg and Roth will have retired. In addition, President-elect George W. Bush has not shown much support for passenger rail service. While insiders do not expect him to be an outspoken opponent of Amtrak, as President Reagan was, he is not expected to be supportive of intercity passenger rail service. The failure of the HSRIA in Congress, combined with the late start of Acela service, means the coming year will be a challenging one for Amtrak’s financial stability. Initial calls to Senate and House leaders have indicated they still support the HSRIA. However, this is no time to take their words for granted. They need to be reminded early and often of the following facts: highway congestion continues to worsen, airline delays continue to mount -- and expanded passenger rail service can help solve both growing problems.
John Boffa, ESPA Washington Representative
The failure of Congress to pass the High Speed Rail Investment bill could cause Amtrak to put off some capital improvements, including projects in New York, according to Amtrak officials. The corporation's financial situation has been aggravated by a year's delay in getting the ACELA Express service operating on the Northeast Corridor, which Amtrak hoped would generate a profit. Since Congress has already cut this year's federal support for Amtrak by 9%, Amtrak finances are currently very tight.
Several Amtrak officials have told ESPA that it will be up to the Amtrak Board of Directors to decide how much will be spent on the various capital improvements planned. In 1998 Governor Pataki signed an agreement with Amtrak to share the cost of a $185 million program to upgrade service on the Empire Corridor. This has since grown to more than $200 million as the turboliner program has required more work than expected. But specific working agreements have yet to be signed for trackwork and signal upgrades, and these projects could be deferred if the Amtrak board decides it can no longer afford them.
Frank Barry
Voter rejection of the $3.8 billion bond issue in November deprived the Rensselaer Station project of $10 million for its final phase. As a result, the Capital District Transportation Authority (CDTA), which is managing the project, plans to postpone construction of one of the four platform tracks planned for the station. This plan was adopted after the state Department of Transportation sent staff to observe train movements to assess the likely impact on train operation.
Since the present station operates with three tracks, the plan will not make operations worse than they are now, but many had hoped the new station would make them better. On some days the present station works fine. But on one weekend in December three trains were forced to wait outside the station for a track to clear. Then on December 26th the east and westbound Lake Shore Limiteds arrived at the same time. This created a crisis since each train requires two tracks to accommodate its New York and Buffalo sections. The resulting disruptions actually spilled over to the next day, delaying the first trains out the following morning. Delays caused by lack of track capacity are not uncommon, particularly when the Lake Shore Limited arrives when two other trains are scheduled in the station. ESPA President Robert Lenz found his train waiting outside the station twice last month.
The new station will have two high level platforms, but the track closest to the building will not be built until new funding becomes available according to the current plan. This track is considered the final phase of the project because the present station must be demolished to make way for it. Consequently it cannot be built until operations are moved to the new station.
ESPA hopes federal, state and local leaders will rally to get money for the fourth track in this year's budget. It will be aggravating to passengers if 125MPH turboliners must wait outside the station before completing their runs. And deferring the fourth track will limit the service expansion which was an important component in the state's application to use federal CMAQ funds for high speed rail service.
ESPA's officers had recommended against supporting the bond issue in our September newsletter because of concern that too little would be spent for rail projects, and concern about increasing state debt when there is a budget surplus. Our hope was that the important rail projects would be financed through conventional means. The Rensselaer fourth track is the only project proposed in the bond issue that would have increased on-time performance, and is therefore arguably the most urgent.
Frank Barry
Congressman Bud Shuster (R., Pa.) has announced his retirement at the end of January for health reasons and "because I've reached the pinnacle of my career," according to National Public Radio (Jan. 4). Shuster chaired the powerful House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee which has provided lavish funding for highways and aviation and crafted the 1997 legislation that requires Amtrak to do without federal support for its operations
Amtrak has announced new customs procedures designed to reduce the time it takes to process guests on the Maple Leaf and Adirondack trains entering and leaving Canada.
The most notable change is that Amtrak customers are now required to submit date-of-birth and citizenship information before their tickets are issued. This information is then forwarded immediately to border crossing agents so that required background checks can be performed before the train reaches the border. Amtrak is also issuing special baggage tags that match numbered stickers on the back of the customer's tickets, allowing border crossing agents to easily determine to whom each bag belongs.
U.S. Rep. Jack Quinn (R-New York) was instrumental in advancing the new procedures to better serve travelers as they cross the United States/Canadian border, said Amtrak's Northeast Corridor President Stan Bagley.
Amtrak introduced one of the most flexible loyalty programs in the travel industry on Nov. 29. Amtrak Guest Rewards enables guests to earn two points for every dollar spent on Amtrak trips. When enough points are earned, they may redeemed for train trips, and other rewards, such as hotel stays, rental cars, gift certificates from nationally-known retailers and airline travel. Here are just a few of the program partners: Continental and United Airlines, Midwest Express, Hilton, Marriott, Macy's Bloomingdale's, Eddie Bauer, Barnes &Noble Booksellers, and The Sharper Image. By making it more rewarding to travel Amtrak, this program promises to help Amtrak build a more loyal customer base and increase revenue.
To enroll, visit www.amtrak.com , and receive a bonus of 500 points, or a 400-point incentive if you enroll by phone, 1 800 307 5000.
Buffalo's required environmental review of a new downtown station for Buffalo is narrowing down to two options, according to Assemblyman Sam Hoyt, a strong backer of the project. In addition to the original proposal to use the lower floor of the Memorial Auditorium, consideration is being given to replacing an adjacent state office building with the intermodal center and other development.
Assemblyman Sam Hoyt has been a strong backer of the new intermodal center, but says Congressman Jack Quinn deserves credit for raising most of the $10 million now available, from federal sources. However more may be needed depending on the alternative chosen. The bond issue defeated in November would have provided $1.35 million which could have served as a federal match.
Much depends on whether Greyhound will move into the new center or stay at the present bus terminal, operated by the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority (NFTA). NFTA plans to upgrade the present terminal for local transit buses whether or not Greyhound stays; it will not pressure Greyhound one way or the other according to statements to the Buffalo News.
Any improvement that moves bus service into the Amtrak Station is likely to improve things for Amtrak passengers. The present station sits in a desolate location under freeway bridges with no other buildings nearby. It is unstaffed when trains 283 and 284 pass through late at night and early in the morning and all day during weekends. Consolidating Amtrak with intercity bus service in a more attractive location should provide enough business to justify staffing at all times, as is the case now in the Syracuse intermodal center.
Greyhound now serves 500 riders a day in Buffalo, according to the Buffalo News. In 1999, roughly 2l,000 Amtrak passengers used the Exchange St. station, about 60 per day. This represents a 28% drop since Amtrak ridership peaked near 30,000 in 1995, the last year before station agent hours were cut back to one shift.
The area around the Auditorium and the Donovan office building is expected to receive $500 million in development funds over the next six years, according to Hoyt. Hoyt says he and Mayor Anthony Masiello have identified this area as "one of the top priorities for downtown development," and both want to see it become a center for commerce and tourism as well as transportation.
Frank Barry
Links to Manhattan Continental Airlines, which has a hub at Newark Airport and American Airlines which is building a major new terminal at Kennedy Airport have both expressed an interest in improved rail connections from these airports to Manhattan. A new rail station near Newark Airport, on NJ Transit's Northeast Corridor, will open in late spring or early summer this year. The Port Authority's monorail system will link this station to the airport. NJ Transit trains can make the trip from Penn Station in Manhattan to the new station in 17 or 18 minutes.
Amtrak may stop its Acela trains at this station as well. But the Port Authority, which is building this station and the monorail extension with Federal tax funds generated by the $3 departure fee at Newark, is planning to charge passengers a five to ten dollar surcharge to use the monorail. (On-airport, the Port Authority charges nothing for motorists and other passengers to use this system).
At Kennedy, the Port Authority is building a linear-motor propelled rail shuttle to link the airport to rail stations at Howard Beach and Jamaica. The Port Authority plans to charge five dollars per passenger to use these links, which are also paid from the tax on departing air passengers. The Pataki-Whitman combo needs to pressure this agency to act and encourage public transit and discourage car use at the airports.
American, which fears Continental will have better connections to Amtrak, is anxious to overcome the Port Authority's inability to offer a one-seat ride from Kennedy to Manhattan, where air passengers could transfer directly to Amtrak. In the meantime, the Port Authority is holding hearings on toll increases for motorists and fare increase for PATH users. A sizable amount of this resource will be used to expand the Goethals Bridge linking Staten Island to New Jersey. Elected officials in Staten Island and Elizabeth, NJ strongly oppose this added roadway capacity. ESPA members need to contact Governor Pataki, since he does have veto power over The Port Authority's actions.
George Haikalis
In December the Metro-North Railroad announced the end of environmental review for the Harlem Line's Third Track Project. The Federal Transit Administration issued a "record of decision" for the project in November, clearing the way for construction.
The project involves building or upgrading approximately 3.5 miles of new track along the Harlem Line between Mt. Vernon West and Crestwood, relieving a bottleneck and allowing local, express and reverse-peak service to increase. The Railroad projects that Harlem Line demand will increase 50% by 2020, and says it can meet that demand with the additional capacity the track will provide.
Metro-North now expects to complete the work by 2005.
Mobilizing the Region, Tri-State Transportation Campaign Bulletin, #282-298
New York City Transit President Lawrence Reuter recently announced the phase-out of transit fare tokens by 2002. Although the move is intended to save money, it may also lead to less safe stations, according to the Tri-State Transportation Campaign. Mr. Reuter assured a Daily News reporter that there would be no unstaffed stations "in the immediate future." However, he said supervisors and police might be defined as staff, and it's likely that a number of part-time entrances at some of the system's outer-most stations will be switched to fully automated operation. NYC Transit intends cut at least 235 token clerks next year alone (for a projected budget saving of $6.5 million).
NYC Transit has indicated that service on the subways will increase 2.5% to 3% next year. But since 1996, overall subway capacity expansion comes to about 10% against a 29% increase in ridership. It is therefore likely that crowding will continue to be the system's top 2001 problem, at least during rush hour. In testimony at a recent MTA board meeting, the Straphangers Campaign characterized the situation as continuance of "the daily stress of elbow-in-the-ribs crowding."
Bus capacity will increase by 5% next year, including some peak increases. Bus capacity will have increased by 27% since 1996. But bus ridership is up 47%.
Mobilizing the Region, Tri-State Transportation Campaign Bulletin, Dec. 26, 2000
Amtrak's long promised 150MPH Acela Express service finally started regular service on December 11th with one round trip between New York and Boston. Although the sleek train got very positive responses from the media for its creature comforts, its performance during the first week was rocky. Twice it had to be replaced by conventional equipment, and every trip arrived late at the end point during the first four days. The worst delay occurred on the second day when a damaged pantograph took the train out of service for the eastbound run. A metroliner trainset replaced it, but that train's engine broke down near Bridgeport, and the train had to be rescued from New Haven, escalating the delay to more than two hours. All passengers got at least part of their fare refunded, according to Amtrak. Conventional equipment had to be substituted again on Thursday, delaying arrival in Boston by one hour and 35 minutes.
But things improved markedly after that. During the second week the longest delay to the eastbound train was 19 minutes, which occurred on Friday, and most of the other runs arrived on time or early. During the third week three runs arrived late, but by no more than 4 minutes. The other seven runs all arrived early--by as much as 5 minutes.
However the hefty fare has apparently deterred riders. The slower Acela Regional train which leaves Washington five minutes behind the Acela Express, sold out virtually every day during the first week, while the Acela Express sold out only once--on the westbound Friday trip. The Acela Regional takes one hour and ten minutes longer to get to Boston but costs $77 one way vs. $162 for the Acela Express. Fares to New York are similar--$143 for the Acela Express, $68 for the Acela regional which takes only 20 minutes longer. The Acela Express costs $120 from New York to Boston vs. $57 for the Acela Regional which leaves 27 minutes behind it and takes 47 minutes longer.
So far, the highly advertised 150MPH speed is still largely symbolic. According to Trains Magazine (Feb.) there are only two short sections in Massachusetts (10 miles), and Rhode Island (8 miles) where this speed is permitted. Top speeds elsewhere do not exceed 135MPH and are limited to 90MPH or less in Metro-North territory between New Rochelle and New Haven, where a major upgrade is planned.
The best potential for 150MPH running probably exists on the largely straight ex-Pennsylvania Railroad mainline between New York and Washington, but major upgrades are needed there too. The overhead catenary (electric transmission wire system) lacks the constant tension system used in Europe--and on the new electrification between New Haven and Boston--to absorb expansion and contraction from temperature changes. This system uses a weight hung from a pulley via a cable attached to the overhead wire that carries power for the locomotive. The weight absorbs the slack in the overhead wire caused by temperature changes--the weight simply falls lower on hot days and rises higher on cold days as the overhead wire expands and contracts. This keeps the overhead wire's tension (and distance above the tracks) constant regardless of the temperature.
Without this ingeniously simple system the overhead wire droops on hot days, which can cause Amtrak to reduce top speeds to as little as 90MPH instead of the normal 125MPH. Otherwise the pantograph, which scrapes along the wire collecting electricity for the locomotive, would create potentially damaging wave action when the wire hangs too loose. So for the present, the Acela Express will be limited to 135MPH south of New York--and probably less on very hot days
Federal requirements for exceeding 135MPH include sophisticated control systems which can be programmed to slow the train automatically for speed restrictions, even temporary ones, if the engineer does not do so, according to Amtrak spokesman Cliff Black. Black says more basic improvements are needed as well: "Much more time can be saved by eliminating slow speed restrictions than raising top speeds."
But so far no funding source has been identified for the upgrades, although the High Speed Rail Investment Act would have provided at least a start had it been passed. Amtrak estimates that needed improvements and repairs may cost as much as $12 billion over the next 25 years.
But despite the obstacles it faces, the Acela Express is still the fastest train ever scheduled in this country. "It's not just top speed but also acceleration--no train in the U.S. has ever accelerated so fast," Black said. Acela should at the very least demonstrate what rail could do if it were properly funded.
Two additional Acela Express round trips to New York are expected by March--one from Washington and one from Boston. Both will leave in the morning and return late in the afternoon, according to the National Association of Railroad Passengers.
Frank Barry
A report by the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Transportation has called Amtrak's New York City tunnels dangerous because of inadequate means for escape, ventilation and water supply in the event of a fire. The report estimated that it would cost $898 million to correct these problems by 2010. Frank Wolf, (R., Va.), who heads the subcommittee that appropriates Amtrak funding and requested the report, has blamed Amtrak for not moving more aggressively to correct the problem.
In past years Wolf has proposed deep cuts in federal support for Amtrak, and Congress has required Amtrak to pay all its operating costs by 2003. This mandate has pushed Amtrak to focus on spending that will generate revenue or reduce costs. Just one ventilation shaft would cost $109 million, but Amtrak's entire fire safety budget for the next year is only $31 million, according to the New York Times.
The Port Authority has made similar improvements to its two tunnels under the Hudson River. Federal and state government agencies have been much more generous in funding commuter transit than Amtrak.
Wolf, who has had a large say in shaping Amtrak's federal appropriation, told the New York Times "I have two kids who live up in New York City. This is an issue of saving lives."
No major accident or fire has occurred in New York City tunnels, but 40-50,000 people die on U.S. roads every year. Some of these deaths could be avoided if Congress were willing to make the far safer rail option more generally available.
Frank Barry--information from the New York Times, Dec., 10 and 19.
After repeated hearing date postponements by the court, New Jersey has reached an out-of-court settlement with the owner of the unused Lackawanna cutoff property, which the state had attempted to acquire through eminent domain. As a result, the New Jersey Department of Transportation and New Jersey Transit will now own the right-of-way from Port Morris to the Delaware Water Gap.
This clears the way for restoration of tracks after required environmental studies are completed and funding is obtained. The FY-2000 federal budget includes $1 million to begin engineering studies, thanks to efforts by Rodney Frelinghueysen (R., N.J.). Restoring tracks to this 28 mile stretch is a vital element in the plan to restore passenger service to Scranton. A fund of $160 million has been authorized to accomplish this in the federal TEA-21 surface transportation funding legislation, according to Morris County, N.J. Planner Frank Reilly, who is leading the project.
Frank Barry
VIA announced the purchase of 139 new passenger cars from ALSTOM. This investment in new passenger rail equipment for Canada's national passenger rail system is worth approximately $125 million dollars. Delivery of the cars should be completed by mid-2001. The first of the new cars is expected to go into regular service next fall.
Former New Jersey Governor James J. Florio spoke to an appreciative audience of nearly fifty persons at a program jointly sponsored by ESPA and Auto-Free New York on Tuesday, December 19, 2000. Auto-Free New York is an advocacy group seeking to reduce car use in New York City. Governor Florio also served in the U.S. Congress where he initiated legislation creating the Superfund to assist communities in reducing toxic waste sites and legislation creating Conrail and advancing Amtrak and public transit investment.
Florio made a strong case for investing in intercity rail passenger service to relieve overcrowded airways and highways. He also explained how intercity rail can help to revive central cities and small towns, promote tourism, and provide an attractive alternative to auto travel for those persons who have difficulty driving long distances.
Florio urged the assembled advocates to not just preach to the converted, but take their case to civic and business groups who could be enlisted in the cause for advancing intercity rail.
The meeting was held in Lower Manhattan. The Downstate ESPA members expressed an interest in meeting in this new location, if space is available.
For more information about future Downstate meetings please contact George Haikalis at 212-475-3394.
| revised 16 January 2001 | [TOP] |
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