The Obama Administration is proposing an additional $6 billion for passenger trains immediately as part of a larger jobs-creating initiative that looks to build on recent economic growth through investment in America’s infrastructure. The 2012 rail money will be broken down into two pots, with $4 billion going to network development and $2 billion going towards system preservation.

The budget provides $2.7 billion in 2013 and $47 billion over six years to develop high speed passenger rail corridors and improve intercity passenger rail service to significantly enhance the national rail network. The proposal includes merging Amtrak’s stand-alone subsidies into the high speed rail program as part of a larger, competitive System Preservation initiative.

For a link to the Budget’s funding highlights for the Department of Transportation, click here.

Today, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced the availability of funding for transportation projects under a fourth round of the popular TIGER (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery) Discretionary Grant program. Out of the $500 million in available funds, up to $100 million will be available for high speed and intercity passenger rail projects.

On November 18, 2011, the President signed the FY 2012 Appropriations Act. This Act appropriated $500 million to the Department of Transportation for National Infrastructure Investments (TIGER) for surface transportation projects having a significant impact on the nation, a metropolitan area, or region.

As in previous rounds of TIGER, high speed and intercity passenger rail projects remain eligible for funding under this program and a high priority of this Administration. The DOT encourages those seeking funding for passenger rail projects to consider TIGER and has made up to $100 million in TIGER funds available to HSIPR projects.

The first three rounds of the TIGER program provided $2.6 billion to 172 projects in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Demand for the program has been overwhelming, and during the prior three rounds, the DOT received more than 3,348 applications requesting more than $95 billion for transportation projects across the country.

Projects will be evaluated on primary criteria that include safety, economic competitiveness, livability, environmental sustainability, state of repair and short-term job creation and are to be awarded on a competitive basis.

Pre-applications are due February 20 and applications are due March 19.

Please click here to view the Notice of Funding Availability.

The public focus was on “high-speed rail,” but many of the investments made by the Obama administration and Congress were small-bore improvements to the nation’s existing rail infrastructure designed to put reliable, quality passenger rail service within reach of more Americans.

Somewhere along the way, however, passenger rail became a political football, with Tea Party governors such as Wisconsin’s Scott Walker and Ohio’s John Kasich all but tying themselves to the tracks to prevent construction of new rail lines in their states.

It’s time they took a second look at what they’re missing, and Maine is a good place to start. Ten years in, Maine’s experiment with the restoration of passenger rail service is paying big dividends, proving that passenger rail has an important place in the nation’s transportation future.

Maine’s Downeaster rail line got its start as the improbable dream of a group of plucky citizen activists who envisioned running trains on a section of track between Boston and Portland, Maine, that last saw passenger traffic in 1965. After more than a decade of determined work, capped by passage of a citizen ballot initiative, the Downeaster made its initial run in December 2001.

The train was an immediate hit — a 1990 study projected that the line would ultimately attract about 167,000 passengers each year, a figure that it quickly surpassed. Last year, the train carried more than half a million passengers — twice as many as in 2005.

The Downeaster’s top speed of 79 mph won’t give the bullet trains of Japan or Europe much of a run for their money. But it is plenty fast enough to provide a comfortable, convenient alternative to driving. By linking tourist destinations, bedroom communities, and college towns to the commercial centers of Boston and Portland, the Downeaster serves a variety of travel markets, from commuters to vacationers.

It wouldn’t exist, however, without a sustained commitment from Maine taxpayers and the federal government, which has made critical investments in track improvements over the years. While the Downeaster brings in more than $7 million a year in fares, concession revenue and parking, the state of Maine still provides significant funding through a pass-through of federal transportation funds and a tax on car rentals.

The benefits of those investments more than outweigh the costs. More than $350 million worth of public and private development projects have been started or completed near Downeaster stations, while the visitors attracted by the train are estimated to pump $12 million addition into the state’s economy each year.

Results like that have enabled the Downeaster to draw support from across the partisan divide. Last year, Maine’s Republican U.S. Senators, along with the state’s Tea Party governor, Paul LePage, voiced their support for a federal grant to improve service on the Downeaster. And the state is in the midst of a project to extend the line beyond Portland to the towns of Freeport and Brunswick that will further boost ridership.

The success of the Downeaster is proof of the benefits that investments in passenger rail can bring to communities, the environment, and the economy. Maine isn’t the only place where Americans are hungering for alternatives to crowded airports and congested highways – Amtrak has broken ridership records in eight of the past nine years, with ridership up 44 percent since fiscal 2000.

In an era of high gasoline prices and limited transportation choices, the case for investment in passenger rail is clear. In some places, true high-speed rail is the answer. But in others, simply getting the trains rolling again is an important first step. Ten years later, Maine’s Downeaster has gone from uncertain experiment to unqualified success. It’s time that officials elsewhere in the country took notice and followed suit.

For the full article in the Huffington Post, please click here.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) on Thursday November 17issued a record of decision for the DesertXpress Enterprises LLC passenger rail line in Clark County and San Bernardino County, Calif.

The decision authorizes the use of right of way to build the line on public land administered by the BLM.

The DesertXpress project received similar approvals from the Surface Transportation Board in October and from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration in July.

The BLM determined that about 821 acres of public land would be needed for the permanent right of way. An additional 95 acres would be needed for temporary construction use. The project also includes about 2,800 acres of private land.

DesertXpress plans to begin engineering and construction next year on the 185-mile double track that would run along Interstate 15.

The company plans to operate trains traveling at 150 mph, with ticket costs averaging $50 per passenger one way.

The company is pursuing a $4.9 billion federal loan to build the $6.5 billion project.

Source: Vegas Inc., by Richard Velotta – http://www.vegasinc.com/news/2011/nov/18/desertxpress-project-takes-another-step-forward/

However, no other details of any kind were given.

Boehner pitched the combined legislation as the GOP’s job creation package, saying that “there can be common ground in Washington when it comes to breaking down barriers to job growth.” A one-page press release from Boehner’s office outlined the same points made by Mica four months ago when he outlined his reauthorization bill — no earmarks, speeding up the project delivery process by consolidating the permitting processes, eliminating needless programs, leveraging private sector dollars, and a ban on earmarks.

More details and Speaker Boehner’s press release can be found here.

According to Transportation Nation’s Todd Zwillich, the leaders will introduce a five-year bill – not a six-year bill, which Mica had supported, but still much longer than the two-year life span of the Senate bill.

For the DC StreetsBlog article, please click here.

In the short-term, AHSRA encourages you to contact the majority members of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on THUD to strongly voice your disappointment about the zeroing out of HSIPR funding.

In the long-term, we must continue to promote the benefits of HSIPR. As of October 31, 2011 approximately $8 billion has been obligated to states and Amtrak. We will see soon these projects create jobs and make a real impact on thousands of communities across the country. We need to highlight these successes and the overall benefits as we continue to make the long-term case for the creation of a HSIPR network.

AHSRA is pleased the legislation includes $1.418 billion for Amtrak, which is only slightly below the FY 11 funding level. Most importantly, H.R. 2112 does not include the language included in the Republican’s House draft bill which would have eliminated service on 26 short-distance routes, affecting 15 States and more than 9 million passengers.

The group would build a high speed rail line on a corridor between Victorville, Calif., and Las Vegas, operating along Interstate 15. Trains would reach speeds up to 150 mph along the corridor, which would not include any vehicular or pedestrian crossings. No stops would be made between the two cities.

The construction of a new rail line requires prior STB approval. The STB granted the DesertXpress approval on the condition that the group would implement 146 environmental mitigation measures recommended in an Environmental Impact Statement that was approved by the Federal Railroad Administration earlier this year.

To read the Progressive Railroading article, please click here.

To view the STB record of decision please click here.

On November 1, the California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) released its new business plan for the proposed California state-wide high speed rail system. For years high speed enthusiasts have looked towards California as well as the Northeastern Corridor as two prime locations for high speed rail systems. California specifically, due to its potential in intercity travel and its growing need for alternative transportation methods in recognition of its ever-increasing population size. The need has always been clear but until now, a plan that has accounted for a project of such scope has not been fully realized.

Changes in the business plan from previous versions involve a heightened focus on the details of contingencies, schedules, and funding plans to plot out the most realistic approach this country has seen in implementing true high speed rail. CHSRA has taken considerable steps to bring specific numbers on the scope, cost, potential ridership, and potential returns to citizens, government officials, and private investors that will help transition the plan into action. Additionally, the plan focuses on individual rail segments that have been developed in cooperation with regional and local transportation partners. This collaboration allows for phased implementation of the rail systems in consideration to current needs, budget constraints, etc. For example, Phase 1, in which construction will begin next year, involves an influx of jobs in Central Valley, an area that has been hard hit by unemployment. This increment of the system, along with two others planned in Phase 1, has been projected to draw net operating profits confirming additional advantages to the phased system approach.

It’s proven that California is in desperate need of transportation investments that look towards its growing future. The real question is what method to use and how to find the most cost effective way. The plan details that providing equivalent new capacity to using more roads and airways would cost nearly twice as much as the proposed Phase 1 high speed rail system and would not solve community and environmental concerns. The plan also outlines high and low estimates in all of its research such as potential ridership growth, population growth, revenue projections, inflation, etc. This helps deter fears that the high speed rail is pushing conservative estimates when, in actuality, the costs may be much higher. In fact, CHSRA has acknowledged that total capital costs will more than double initial estimates to total about $98 billion. Keep in mind that the road and airways equivalent would nearly double that estimate.

With the government in a heated debate on what to do with our decaying transportation system, California’s plan helps show clear and succinct evidence of the benefits in high speed rail in California. By dividing the program into a series of parts which can provide high speed rail service standing alone or connected throughout the state, the plan produces a realistic approach that will help bring timely implementation to a dire situation while being cost-effective. By combining ideas and results from other high speed rail networks around the world, California proved that high speed rail in the U.S. can be successful.

Click here to access the full draft 2012 business plan.

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