[il-talk] Fw: Getting Railroaded

[Edwin]

I thought I heard on NPR that ridership was up on Amtrak.  Is this true?  If
ridership is up does this translate into more income?

  _____  

From: il-talk [mailto:il-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Bill Reif
Sent: Sunday, March 10, 2013 3:29 PM
To: NFB of Illinois Mailing List
Subject: [il-talk] Fw: Getting Railroaded


Hello,

This editorial in Yesterday's Tribune speaks to an issue of great importance
to the blind and to others who don't drive. Be assured that one train per
day between Chicago and St Louis wouldn't be nearly sufficient. There's not
room on the trains now. It would have been nice if the Tribune indicated how
much federal money we're talking in Illinois, as it did for other states.

Cordially,
Bill




-------- Original Message -------- 
Subject: 	Article from Chicago Tribune Editorial 2013 03 09	
Date: 	Sat, 9 Mar 2013 19:26:13 -0500 (EST)	
From: 	NFB-NEWSLINE Online  <mailto:nfbnewsline at nfb.org>
<nfbnewsline at nfb.org>	
To: 	William B. Reif  <mailto:billreif at ameritech.net>
<billreif at ameritech.net>	


Getting railroaded \ Illinois will have to cough up more for train service.
Beginning Oct. 1, the federal government no longer will subsidize Amtrak
routes that run less than 750 miles. The annual cost, about $166 million as
of fiscal 2012, will shift to 14 states, including Illinois, that are served
by those routes. . This has some of the states scrambling. New York will
spend $6 million this year on short-distance Amtrak routes. Gov. Andrew
Cuomo wants $44 million more next year, largely to maintain service when the
federal subsidy goes away. Michigan will spend $8 million this year and
looks to kick in another $25 million when the federal cash flow stops. Some
states may decide they don't want to pay up. Indiana doesn't provide any
subsidy now and may allow Amtrak to reduce service between Indianapolis and
Chicago rather than kick in money. Illinois, which is loaded with debt and
can't pay its bills on time, nevertheless spends $26 million a year for
Amtrak service. Gov. Pat Quinn has budgeted $12 million more to maintain
service after Oct. 1, though state transit officials say they're in talks
with Amtrak and expect the increase to be $5 million to $6 million. If
Illinois doesn't come up with extra cash, service would be reduced. Amtrak
trains no longer would stop in the downstate towns of Quincy and Macomb.
Service from Chicago to Carbondale would be cut from three round trips a day
to one. Chicago to St. Louis would go from five trains a day to one. Chicago
to Milwaukee, which handles 838,000 riders a year, would go from as many as
eight trains a day to one. Funny, nobody seems to mention this whenever
Quinn and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood trumpet the ambitious plans
for high-speed rail in Illinois. The feds are pouring money into the states
to build the infrastructure for high-speed rail ... while the feds are
quietly taking away Amtrak's short-line operating subsidies. Ahem. Illinois
plans to expand high-speed rail significantly over the coming decade. The
state has pledged $400 million for upgrades between Chicago and St. Louis,
including $278 million to match federal grants. The 2008 federal stimulus
legislation allocated $1.14 billion for Chicago to St. Louis, 70 to 75
percent of which has not yet been spent. Not exactly shovel-ready, but you
can bet that money will be spent eventually. The federal government and
willing partner states such as Illinois are pouring money into building up
Amtrak service, but feds are walking away from paying for operations. Given
the state's dire finances, the passenger rail system here will be all
dressed up with nowhere to go. The proponents of high-speed rail say: No
sweat, after the expensive upgrades the system will be much more productive.
Faster trains will be a big draw for passengers, which will produce new
revenues. But Amtrak passenger revenues don't come close to covering the
cost of the service and there's little prospect that they ever will. Who
will be on the hook in Illinois? It won't be Uncle Sam. It will be Uncle
Springfield.. ILLUSTRATION: Photo(s). Photo: The end of the line nears for
federal subsidies of Amtrak routes of less than 750 miles. ANDREW
HARRER/BLOOMBERG PHOTO. This article is provided to you as a courtesy of
NFB-NEWSLINER Online