| Issue 53 | September 29, 1995 |
Hard Times: Amtrak and Cities Scrap Over Half Cent
Amtrak President Thomas Downs recently announced that the national passenger railroad could function without federal subsidies by 2002 if Congress approves an authorizations bill under consideration in the Senate. The bill, still circulating among Senate committees, calls for the dedication of one-half cent of Federal gasoline tax revenue to an Amtrak Trust Fund. Downs says Amtrak would use the half-cent -- totaling $600 million per year -- for its capital budget. However mass transit interests say the half-cent belongs to metropolitan bus and rail improvements. As legislation that has been diverting the half-cent to budget deficit reductions expires, the $600 million is slated for the Mass Transit Account. Inter-city rail advocates argue the money should go to Amtrak because the current Congress is unlikely to appropriate extra Transit Account funds for real transit projects. $8 billion sits in the Mass Transit Account already, yet Congress has been unwilling to appropriate the sum for urban transit projects. Amtrak Trust Fund supporters say Republicans in Congress are more likely to appropriate the half-cent if it goes to Amtrak projects that serve rural and western areas. Scott Leonard of the National Association of Railroad Passengers argues, "Of the two eco-friendly transportation forms contending for the half cent, the money should go where Congress will spend it." Some observers advocate apportioning the half-cent for Amtrak on a temporary basis; then any 1996 provision that short-changes urban transit could be revisited when federal transportation legislation (ISTEA) is reauthorized in 1997. The full Senate is expected to vote on the half-cent proposal mid-Oct. No similar provision exists in any House of Representatives bill. Passenger Transport, NY Times
