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July 22, 2005
Byrd Staves Off Crippling Amtrak Cut; Key Funding Panel Rejects Bush Plan to Bankrupt Passenger Rail Service
By HNN Staff
Washingon, D.C. (HNN) - U.S. Senator Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va., has successfully saved the nation's passenger rail service from falling into bankruptcy in the face of a debilitating funding cut backed by the Bush Administration.
"Amtrak is a critical transportation link for people in all corners of this country," Byrd said Thursday, July 21, 2005. "According to the Congressional Research Service, passenger rail systems in the United States carry about five times as many passengers each day as do airlines. Amtrak last year recorded its highest ridership levels in history. The American people depend on the railroad, and the White House should value it, too."
In his budget request, President George W. Bush proposed the elimination of Amtrak's funding except for $360 million which would be put aside for train service along the Northeast Corridor in case of Amtrak's bankruptcy. Amtrak officials had requested $1.8 billion, and Department of Transportation officials testified before Congress that Amtrak needed at least $1.4 billion to maintain current routes and services.
The Senate Appropriations Committee has approved a bipartisan effort engineered by Byrd that would direct $1.4 billion to Amtrak and reject the White House's plan to cripple the railroad. The funding not only restores the proposed cut but also adds $200 million above Amtrak's operating subsidy last year. The Administration has threatened to veto the legislation if the full Amtrak funding remains in the bill.
"The elimination of Amtrak's subsidy is not a recipe for a streamlined railroad. It is not a recipe for a more efficient railroad. It is a recipe for a dead railroad. It is a shame that we passenger rail supporters in Congress have to struggle year after year to provide just enough funding to allow Amtrak to scrape by," Byrd said.
"Aside from a small funding lifeline for trains servicing the big cities along the Northeast Corridor, the Bush Administration would pull the rug out from under Amtrak riders across the country. This shortsighted plan takes the national out of national passenger rail service and turns its back on rural communities across America where Amtrak is a primary transportation link to the rest of the country," Byrd said.
Each of the Bush Administration's five budget requests has targeted Amtrak funding at levels that would have rendered the system inoperable. Each year, Byrd and Washington Senator Patty Murray, D-Wash., have found ways to ensure that the railroad stays on track. Byrd is the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee; Murray leads the Democrats on the Appropriations transportation subcommittee.
"For too long, Congress and presidential administrations have set unrealistically high standards for national rail service while providing miserably low funding. With the price of gasoline skyrocketing, and increasing competition for foreign oil, we must make the investments necessary to allow Amtrak to improve its service and modernize its trains. That is why I have worked with such determination to ensure that Amtrak has enough funding to keep on track," Byrd stated.
The American Passenger Rail Coalition highlighted Byrd's steadfast support for Amtrak this week by presenting him with the organization's Rail Leadership Award.
