Speaking of the nation’s rail system, the Tribune published an AP story about Amtrak
After half a century as more of a curiosity than a convenience, passenger trains are getting back on track in some parts of the country.
The high cost of energy, coupled with congestion on highways and at airports, is drawing travelers back to trains not only for commuting but also for travel between cities as many as 500 miles apart.
In the Midwest, transportation officials are pushing a plan to connect cities in nine states in a hub-and-spoke system centered in Chicago. The nine states included in the Midwest Regional Rail Initiative are Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri and Nebraska.
Californians are considering selling billions of dollars worth of bonds to get going on an 800-mile system of bullet trains that could zip along at 200 m.p.h., linking San Francisco and San Diego and the cities in between.
The public is ahead of policymakers in recognizing trains as an attractive alternative to cars and planes, said U.S. Rep. James Oberstar (D-Minn.), chairman of the House Transportation Committee.
[From More get on board with train travel — chicagotribune.com]
There is some momentum building in Congress towards fully funding Amtrak, without preconditions.
Amtrak…, drew a record 28.7 million in the year ending Sept. 30. That is 11 percent more than the year before and the sixth straight year that ridership has increased. Ticket revenue hit a record $1.7 billion, a $200 million increase from a year earlier.
Rail travel is gaining greater favor in Congress, which provides the subsidies needed to keep Amtrak rolling. Lawmakers are trying to find ways to deal with high energy prices, congested and aging roads and bridges, and an air traffic control system that relies largely on World War II-era technology.
Despite the opposition from the usual idiot opponents who hate Amtrak for some reason, like Bush:
President George W. Bush, an Amtrak critic who has opposed anything more than minimal money for the rail service over the past eight years
and John McCain:
Republican presidential nominee John McCain has been a persistent critic of Amtrak’s reliance on subsidies. Obama co-sponsored the recent Amtrak bill; McCain voted against it.
I believe strongly that subsidy for a national rail system helps the country, insisting Amtrak pay for itself solely with fees collected is stupid policy.
Then there are ignorant Senators like Jeff Sessions:
Unlike Europeans, whose cities are connected by passenger rail networks, relatively few Americans travel by rail except in the popular corridor from Washington to Boston, in parts of California and routes extending from Chicago. Outside the Northeast, ticket fares usually do not cover direct operating costs.
Critics say it is unfair to require people in areas where there is no Amtrak service or infrequent service to subsidize the train travel of people in the few corridors where there is frequent, fast service.
“I do not think you can justify many, perhaps most, of the routes Amtrak is running,” Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) said during Senate debate in September.
Well, looking at the Amtrak national service map, I see there are two rail lines that go right through Alabama. What exactly is Sessions referring to? Really there should have more rail lines, and more government subsidy so that regular people would rely more upon Amtrak and less upon the interstate. Ticket prices should be cheaper, not more expensive.
Finally, another good reason to vote for Obama – he strongly supports Amtrak.
In the Midwest, expansion of the passenger rail network is supported by Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama.
Some cities that would be in the network have passenger train service to Chicago, but it is often slow and infrequent. The regional plan calls for using 3,000 miles of existing rail rights of way and introducing modern train cars and engines operating at speeds up to 110 m.p.h.
