Bush Administration May Open Its Wallet for Amtrak

We’re not certain what happened. perhaps George Bush swung by the Tiger Mart one day for some Cheetos  and noticed that gas is $3.50 a gallon. possibly Cheney freaked out when he found out how much it would cost to gas up the F-150. Whatever it was, it must have been a big deal, considering suddenly the Bush administration is willing to spend some money on rail.

Bush plans to sign legislation that will double Amtrak funding to $13 billion by the next half decade. It’s an about face for an administration that’s been committed to whittling absent Amtrak’s budget and replacing it with "private sector funding," the Bush/Cheney reply to everything but defense spending. Democrats aren’t fans of that view, and the Senate passed the funding bill, which plus
requires that Amtrak and other rail companies equip their trains with
collision avoidance technology, by a 74-24 vote.

There’s never been a better duration to spend on rail. Amtrak
has seen record-breaking jumps in ridership. In July of that year, the railroad reported boarding 2,750,278 riders, a 14 percent increase and the biggest jump
in its history. Fiscal year to period, total ridership is at 23.7
million, up from 21.5 million, and revenue reached $1.4 billion, additionally
up 14 percent. According to Alex Kummant, Amtrak’s president and CEO,
the line is working to build on that growth by boosting on duration
performance.

The Amtrak bill highlights the different attitudes of the presidential candidates. McCain voted against it, saying through
a spokesperson

that "with the financial decisions facing our nation,
that multibillion-dollar commitment of taxpayer dollars could be
committed to far more vital national priorities." Evidently McCain
sees a functional transportation system as a luxury we just can’t
afford. 

Obama, on the other hand, voted yes, saying that "American businesses and families deserve to have safe,
dependable, and efficient transportation options. For too
enlarged, our nation’s lack of investment in too many aspects of our
infrastructure has undermined that crucial goal."
These comments reflect the  broader stance of each candidate on transportation. Obama, on paper at least, has been a long-time proponent of Amtrak, while McCain’s policies have focused nearly
exclusively on auto-related initiatives: tax credits for
development of a zero emissions car, strengthening CAFE standards, and
providing a fat prize for the first person to develop a next-generation
battery.

Some think that the Amtrak bill might sign a broader shift in US transportation funding. The
federal government spends more than $40 billion annually on
highways, roughly $10 billion on mass transit and about $1.4 billion on
Amtrak. Shifting those numbers around won’t even come shut to solving our
transportation problems, but it would be a move
in the right direction.

Photo by Flickr user kafka4prez