Amtrak
Is the House Democrats’ New “Buy America” Jobs Bill Just a Political Ploy?
With no movement on a highway bill from House T&I Chairman John Mica until after Congress reconvenes in January, Ranking Member Nick Rahall held a press conference today to introduce the “Invest in American Jobs Act of 2011” [PDF]. The act would strengthen the “Buy America” requirements already in place on transit, rail, highway, bridge, and aviation programs.
December 1, 2011
Mica Drops Amtrak Privatization Plan In Call for Northeast Corridor HSR
House Transportation Committee Chairman John Mica backed off his controversial plan to privatize passenger rail on the Northeast Corridor today, announcing at a press conference that reforming Amtrak would suffice.
November 8, 2011
How Will the House Answer the Senate’s Transportation Funding Bill?
The full Senate passed a major appropriations bill yesterday, including funding levels for transportation and housing. The Senate put the kibosh on Sen. Rand Paul's attempt to strip bike/ped funding from the federal transportation program, as we reported yesterday. Here's the lowdown on the bill as a whole.
November 2, 2011
Yes, Amtrak Can Be Saved, As Long As Republican Proposals Fail
“Last year we spent more than $40 billion on highways, and Lord knows we need that -- but that’s more than we spent on Amtrak in its entire 40-year history,” New Jersey Senator Frank Lautenberg said this morning at the start of a hearing on the future of passenger rail. “And unfortunately, some say we can't afford vital public investments like these right now. And I say we can’t afford not to make these investments.”
September 14, 2011
Rail Advocates: House Bill Would Kill Amtrak
The 2012 transportation budget passed by a subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee yesterday cut all high-speed rail funding and slashes Amtrak’s operating grant by 60 percent. What's more, it forbids Amtrak from using that money to fund short corridors.
September 9, 2011
House GOP’s 2012 Transportation Budget: Deep Cuts, Especially for Livability
In about an hour, Congressional appropriators will vote on how much money to allocate for transportation in the next fiscal year. It won't be pretty.
September 8, 2011
Mica and Rail Supporters Meet Halfway
At a meeting with members of the U.S. High-Speed Rail Association Tuesday, House Transportation Committee Chair John Mica softened his stance somewhat on his plan to privatize the Northeast Corridor.
July 28, 2011
Amtrak’s Loco Locomotive Purchase for the Northeast Corridor
We're pleased to welcome Stephen Smith as a new contributor to Streetsblog Capitol Hill. We'll be running Stephen's work on a regular basis, and you can catch more of his writing at his home blog, Market Urbanism.
July 22, 2011
CRS: Northeast Corridor Privatization Plan Violates Constitution
The nonpartisan Congressional Research Service has examined the question of whether the GOP plan to privatize Amtrak’s most valuable corridor is constitutional – and it’s determined that it is not.
July 13, 2011
The Economist Issues a Reality Check to Rail Privatization Proponents
The Economist's blog on business travel, Gulliver, has a short post this morning about Rep. John Mica's proposal to privatize the Northeast Corridor. Blogger "N.B." has a healthy dose of skepticism for arguments on either side but does significantly more damage to Mica's argument that that of his opponents. Gulliver strikes a blow at the very idea that private companies can accomplish what Mica hopes they will:
June 27, 2011