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| May
2, 2003; Volume IX, Issue 9 |
| Amtrak
Releases 5-Year Strategic Plan
 On
April 25, Amtrak President and CEO David Gunn
released a new five-year strategic plan designed
to restore the rail carrier’s physical plant
and train equipment to a state of good repair
and to improve the railroad's operational
reliability.
The
plan focuses on improving reliability and
cost-efficiency through investments in existing
infrastructure and equipment, and proposes no
new significant passenger services. "While
there has been much discussion of 'reforming'
Amtrak in recent years, no matter what reforms
policymakers may want, you have first got to get
costs and reliability under control," said
Gunn. "This strategic plan focuses on
running a fiscally tight business and bringing
the railroad to a state of good repair so that
it costs less to operate and costs less for the
taxpayer to support it."
"This
plan is comprehensive and thorough. Every dollar
is strictly accounted for, and anyone reviewing
the plan can understand where and why the money
is being invested," said Gunn. "The
dividend of such investment would be a railroad
in good operating condition, with overhauled,
safe, reliable, and well-maintained equipment.
For the tracks we own, it will mean a state of
good repair, far fewer speed restrictions that
degrade capacity, riding comfort and schedule
reliability."
For
more information on Amtrak’s strategic plan, click
here.
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Amtrak
CEO David Gunn Takes Plan to Capitol Hill
 On
April 28, Gunn testified before the House
Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s
Subcommittee on Railroads in a hearing to
examine Amtrak’s current financial and
operational situation and prospects. Mr.
Gunn’s testimony focused on recent and planned
improvements to the rail system, and addressed
some of the specific criticisms leveled against
the organization. “Repairing and improving
this railroad is the Board’s and my immediate
goal and is in everyone’s interest,” said
Gunn in his testimony. “We have a five-year plan that will accomplish this, and I
am asking for your support and leadership as we
move forward.
I would urge you to consider this plan in
the broader context of Amtrak’s
reauthorization where it really should be done
and end this stutter-step practice of reforming
Amtrak through the annual appropriations
process.”
Additionally,
Mr. Gunn participated in a hearing on April 29
before the Senate Commerce, Science, and
Transportation Committee’s Subcommittee on
Surface Transportation on Amtrak’s five-year
plan and the future
of intercity rail passenger service. The hearing
also featured testimony from DOT Inspector
General Ken Mead, DOT Deputy Secretary Michael
Jackson, and Reconnecting America Co-Director
and STPP Board Member Hank Dittmar.
To read David
Gunn’s testimony in the House, click
here.
To read David
Gunn’s testimony in the Senate, click
here.
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Dittmar
Outlines 'Reconnecting America' Vision at Senate
Panel
 Testifying
April 29 before the Senate Commerce, Science and
Transportation Committee, Reconnecting America
Co-Director Hank Dittmar shared his
initiative’s vision for the future of
passenger rail and Amtrak. “We believe that
passenger rail can play a significant part in
our nation’s transportation system, if we
redefine the role that intercity rail plays in
that network, and if we provide stable levels of
capital funding, create incentives for
connecting our separate air, rail and bus
networks together, and remove regulatory
barriers that prohibit coordinated planning and
integrated approaches to delivering intercity
transportation services – both passenger and
freight,” he told the panel.
In discussing
Amtrak, he noted that the nation’s intercity
passenger rail corporation “was saddled with
an impossible set of conditions.”
Dittmar also addressed “the failure of
United States transportation policy and practice
to approach transportation service delivery in a
networked manner.
Each mode – air, rail, bus, and
automobile – is presumed to operate
independently, and to compete with one another
for customers and scarce resources. The failure
to network the transportation system, with both
public and private components, is increasingly
leading to system and market failures within
each industry, and these failures are
increasingly threatening continued improvements
in our Nation’s economic productivity.”
In his oral
remarks and written statement, Dittmar, who is
also a STPP Board Member, also outlined several
specific recommendations on actions to help
overcome these challenges.
To view the
testimony, click
here.
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2002 Traffic Deaths at Highest Level
in 13 Years
 Fatalities
from traffic accidents in the US went up 1.7
percent in 2002, to the highest number of deaths
since 1990, according to an analysis based on
preliminary estimates of traffic deaths released
last week by the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (NHTSA). The report attributed
the increase chiefly to fatalities among
travelers in SUVs, light trucks and vans, which
grew by 4.2 percent. The increase in rollover
fatalities in SUVs and pickup trucks accounted
for half of the 1.7 percent increase in traffic
fatalities.
While
the estimated fatality rate relative to vehicle
miles traveled remained constant in 2002, the
fatality rate per 100,000 persons rose by 0.7
percent for the year. Pedestrian and bicyclist
fatalities remain over-represented in the total,
with 13 percent of the estimated 42,850 persons
killed in 2002.
For
more information, click
here.
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| President's
TEA-21 Reauthorization Plan Coming Soon
 The
Bush Administration’s TEA-21 reauthorization
plan is expected to propose $14 billion on a new
transportation safety initiative, referred to as
the “centerpiece” of its proposal. The
proposal, called “The Safe and Flexible
Transportation Efficiency Act of 2003,” or
SAFETEA, is in the final stages of review by the
Office of Management and Budget and is expected
to be released sometime next week.
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