House Transportation Committee Knocks High-Speed Rail Funding Plan

Members of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Thursday criticized high-speed rail funding plans by suggesting that the $8 billion set aside from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act for projects around the country instead should be pumped almost exclusively into the Northeast Corridor—where only $109 million was allocated. Committee members argued that high-speed rail development between Boston, New York and Washington would ease chronic airport delays in the region.

"This is our nation's most congested corridor, on land and in the air," said Rep. John Mica (R-Fla.), chairing the committee's first hearing of the 112th Congress. "Seventy percent of our chronically delayed flights begin in New York airspace. [Amtrak] Acela is moving at a snail's pace. Instead of providing a visionary transportation link in America, we continue to support an antiquated unproductive corridor that struggles to meet the needs of its many users."

Also including such cities as Baltimore and Philadelphia, the Northeast Corridor accounts for nearly a fifth of the U.S. population and is the only region in which Amtrak is profitable.

Amtrak's Northeast Corridor Infrastructure Master Plan, issued in June 2010, called for a $52 billion capital investment over 20 years. Committee members chastised this plan, claiming that the development outlined in it would actually require at least $117 billion and not be completed until 2040. Members pointed out that the plan would not go far enough in achieving President Barack Obama's goal of providing "within 25 years" high-speed rail access to "80 percent of Americans," according to his Jan. 25 State of the Union address.

At the current pace, "Amtrak will never be capable of developing the corridor to its true high-speed potential," Mica said. "The task is too complex and too large-scale and can only be addressed with the help of private-sector expertise. They will never get the funding for it with the plan that they currently proposed."

Said Rep. Bill Shuster (R-Penn.), who serves as chairman of the subcommittee on railroads, pipelines and hazardous materials: "Unfortunately, the United States is far behind the curve on high-speed rail. Europe [has] been at work for decades on an impressive high-speed rail network. Japan is working on a new high-speed train that will carry passengers at up to 310 miles per hour between Osaka and Tokyo, augmenting their existing bullet trains. And China is spending nearly $300 billion to develop 8,000 miles of new high-speed track by 2020."

According to testimony from former Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell, "We are spending money to go from 83 miles an hour to 110 miles an hour. If we are going to compete with those countries, it's too slow. We've got to get real."

Currently, Amtrak Acela averages 83 miles per hour between New York and Washington, and 72 miles per hour between New York and Boston (see correction).

Presented during the hearing, a University of Pennsylvania study on high-speed rail in the Northeast Corridor estimated that $98 billion would be needed to build two dedicated high-speed rail tracks between Boston to Washington. If built, those tracks could cut total trip time by 45 minutes between New York and Boston, and by 90 minutes between New York and Washington.

Although the National Business Travel Association did not submit testimony for the hearing, director of public policy Shane Downey previously indicated that NBTA supports high-speed rail funding, but only if there is a better plan.

Footing The Bill 

Committee members and those testifying agreed that $8 billion for high-speed rail scratches the surface of the total funding needed.

According to Rep. Corrine Brown (D-Fla.), "For eight years under the Bush Administration, zero funds went to Amtrak. This is the first time we have made a major investment in high-speed rail. This is beginning."

Some Republican representatives advocated that tracks be leased to the private sector but representatives from Goldman Sachs & Co. and Morgan Stanley questioned how quickly a return on investment would be realized.

"Certainly public funds can be leveraged through private investment; however, it is a delicate balancing act," said Goldman Sachs managing director John Ma. "What risk will the public retain and what would be moved to the private?"

Separately, the Republican caucus this month in a set of recommendations on cutting government spending suggested that annual Amtrak funding be slashed by $1.5 billion annually. The committee's Republicans said Amtrak funds have been "mismanaged." They seek "stronger accountability and reform of rail service."