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Dear Chairman Oberstar:

I write on behalf of the American Public Transportation Association’s (APTA) more than 1,500 member organizations to express our views regarding the conference on H.R.6003, “Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2008” and S.294, “Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2007.”  We support passage of this legislation.  These bills would make important improvements in Amtrak and other intercity rail passenger services, set the stage for future high-speed rail, and include provisions important to commuter rail systems. 

We support increased federal investment in passenger rail service, including urban rail systems, commuter rail, high-speed rail, and intercity rail.  Greater use of passenger rail service can help the nation achieve goals to reduce energy consumption and the release of greenhouse gases that result in climate change.  With recent increases in fuel costs leading to higher air travel costs, high-speed passenger rail could serve as a viable cost effective travel alternative.  This would also help to reduce the growing congestion in our aviation system. 

As you begin the conference, APTA urges the adoption of the following provisions included in the House-passed Amtrak authorization bill.  We support the $2.5 billion authorization ($500 million per year) from Amtrak’s capital funding for state grants for intercity passenger rail service.  In addition, we urge the conferees to clarify that public or private entities other than Amtrak should be eligible to provide service to states.

APTA strongly supports the creation of a process under Title IV of the House bill that allows public commuter rail systems to petition the Surface Transportation Board (STB) for non-binding mediation if they are unable to reach agreement with private railroads on terms under which they access the railroad’s track to run passenger rail service.  While a non-binding mediation process may not resolve all issues, we believe that the process would be helpful in ensuring that the public benefits of providing commuter rail service to communities and citizens are recognized.  These provisions would also provide a forum to review the terms and costs which public commuter rail systems must pay to operate service on privately owned railroad facilities.

Additionally, we want to express our strong support for the House provision that creates a program to encourage the development of high-speed passenger rail service.  The authorization of $1.75 billion over five fiscal years ($350 million per year) for grants to develop high-speed rail service reflects an important commitment by the federal government to promote such service.  APTA believes that trips by rail of fewer than 500 miles in highly traveled corridors makes sense today and will make even more sense in the future.  With the increasing costs of fuel and the need to conserve energy and reduce harmful emissions that contribute to global warming, we firmly believe that high-speed rail is a sustainable investment that will benefit generations to come.  We also appreciate the inclusion in the House bill of the provision that would promote the development of a new high-speed rail corridor between New York City and Washington, D.C. 

We support House language that requires Amtrak to study the impacts, including costs, of improvements to stations to make them readily accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities. 

Finally, we support the inclusion of a provision which is in the Senate bill and was originally in Title V of the House bill and all similar bills in Congress for the past several years that holds harmless commuter rail agencies from certain railroad labor laws in executing federal grants for the development of intercity rail.

We appreciate this opportunity to submit our views on this important legislation and look forward to working with you as this legislation is considered in conference.  If you have any questions about these issues, please have your staff contact Tom Yedinak of APTA’s Government Affairs Department at (202) 496-4865 or email tyedinak@apta.com.

Sincerely,

William W. Millar
President

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