Amtrak: Connects US // American Jobs Plan Infrastructure Legislation

The $66B for freight and passenger rail has been quoted in multiple venues.

It can't all go to Amtrak.

I can't imagine the Feds investing in CAHSR beyond what's already committed. But I could see them bailing out TXHSR.

Some of that funding may go towards programs similar to CREATE in Chicago that reduce junction bottlenecks in the freight networks or bypasses that would make way for other projects. Tower 55 in Dallas comes to mind, and I'm sure there are others which would directly and indirectly benefit either Amtrak or commuter rail agencies.

I suspect locomotives and rolling stock for Amtrak will get some funding as well. Perhaps the Alaska-Canada railroad gets a piece of the pie, too?

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Mr. Olesen, lest we forget who proposed A2A?

Lest we not forget who is in the White House today.

Need we say more about the likelihood of that getting funded?

Someone who knows more than me can answer this question: are there any real plans to extend the NEC South to Richmond? I mean full on, electrification, higher speed, and not just service increases.

It might be worth looking into if Amtrak is going to seriously start getting some more dough. Just a thought though, I agree that there are projects that deserve the money more (like straightening out some curves on the NEC, east river tunnels, etc)

I think I remember hearing something about subsidies being given to Brightline to encourage private investment. Is there anything for Brightline and Texas Central, or for any Amtrak projects or services that aren't on the Mortheast Corridor?

I also feel this would be another example of where the private sector could provide more funding for passenger rail projects than the federal government where its finding has to be split among various other rail agencies throughout the nation.

mcgrath618 wrote: ↑Fri Jun 25, 2021 11:54 am Someone who knows more than me can answer this question: are there any real plans to extend the NEC South to Richmond? I mean full on, electrification, higher speed, and not just service increases.

It might be worth looking into if Amtrak is going to seriously start getting some more dough. Just a thought though, I agree that there are projects that deserve the money more (like straightening out some curves on the NEC, east river tunnels, etc)

I don't know much more but it does make me realize that Virginia never really discussed an NEC extension or cooperation with Amtrak specifically in its big RF&P purchase announcement. Virginia does have plans (and owns ROW) for creating dedicated passenger tracks from DC to Richmond (*with the exception of downtown Ashland). While I have not read the CSX trackage rights agreement, I don't believe there are any legal barriers to electrifying those same tracks (although AFAIK VA has not planned or budgeted electrification as yet).

[from a fantasy perspective] As you go South, S-line reconstruction is just about ready to go and there is a deal in place for NCDOT to purchase the active CSX tracks from Norlina to Raleigh (but I don't believe the deal has closed yet). Once dedicated passenger tracks reach Raleigh, the NCRR has an unused 150' chunk of ROW (alongside the leased NS freight tracks) all the way to Charlotte. If construction money fell from the sky, I have no doubt that NCDOT would be happy to build dedicated passenger tracks on the ROW they already control through the state-owned NCRR (maintenance costs would be the sticking point). So, funding and engineering details aside, all of the necessary property for a full-bore "NEC" extension from DC to Charlotte is (nearly) already owned by the two states.

Add in the greenfield HSR project from Charlotte to Atlanta (which will require huge $$$) and the "NEC/SEC" could be a 600 mile extension and serve the majority of the East Coast.

For what it's worth, I just heard a news report at the gym that said this Infrastructure Deal was a trap by the Dems to sound bipartisan but behind the scenes they have no intention of passing it unless the GOP accepts another separate deal which is a Democratic wish list that the GOP will not support.

The five GOP senators who cut a deal with moderate Democrats and the president are frustrated that Biden explicitly tied his signature on a bipartisan infrastructure bill to a separate Democrats-only measure . . .

Biden said of the bipartisan deal yesterday that if this "is the only one that comes to me, I’m not signing it." The president added that his support for the nearly $1 trillion infrastructure deal is contingent upon it passing "in tandem" with a bigger bill that's shaped without GOP input.

Talk about shady politics.

This admin can't even get bait and switch right. They should have passed infrastructure first and then gone after the reconciliation pork.

By waffling/switching before the vote, Biden just gave the handful of GOP votes he needed for infrastructure reasonable justification to tank the very deal they agreed to.

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All official Amtrak posts ( not timetables ) list that WASH - Richmond is posted as part of the NEC. However IMO the old RF&P Row i very crooked in many places. Probably not before 2050 can Amtrak and Va. come to an understanding of how to mitigate these problems ?

bostontrainguy wrote: ↑Fri Jun 25, 2021 2:52 pm For what it's worth, I just heard a news report at the gym that said this Infrastructure Deal was a trap by the Dems to sound bipartisan but behind the scenes they have no intention of passing it unless the GOP accepts another separate deal which is a Democratic wish list that the GOP will not support.

Mr. Trainguy, while I'm simply too old to go to gyms (still try to walk 7000 steps or 3.5mi a day. That is how my Amtrak observations reported here come about), the Journal editorialized to much the same as you heard. Your gym is simply "my washroom when I was with the MILW" and learned of upper management's enmity towards Amtrak, which I readily concede formulated my views I share at this forum (also, simply riding Amtrak has for me become a "meh" experience) :

https://www.wsj.com/articles/instant-bi ... 1624574163

Fair Use:

Politicians in Washington renege on their bipartisan promises all the time, but what are we to make of a deal in which one side admits it is pulling a bait and switch from the start? That was the astonishing news Thursday as President Biden and Speaker Nancy Pelosi endorsed a bipartisan Senate infrastructure deal even as they said the price of their support is getting the rest of their agenda too.

Mr. Biden stood with five Democratic and five Republican Senators at the White House and endorsed their trillion-dollar infrastructure outline

Washington and Richmond can be considered part of the NEC as it is like an extension. In fact, on the Facebook page that's devoted to the Northeast Corridor, there are plenty of pictures on that page from the stretch of the route from DC-Richmond. That's because there are plenty of trains that extend from DC down to Richmond. In fact, those frequencies will only increase. It will be great to have close to hourly service to Richmond from the Northeast.

Just saw this video, that was from June 12th, via the Washington Post.

$66B in the final bill for passenger rail. That seems like enough to find everything that any state who wants to should get something

Nope. That $66B is for all rail including freight. Keep dreaming that it will all go to Amtrak, regardless who is in what office.


https://www.businessinsider.com/amtrak- ... ght-2021-6

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eolesen wrote: ↑Sat Jun 26, 2021 3:12 pm Nope. That $66B is for all rail including freight. Keep dreaming that it will all go to Amtrak, regardless who is in what office.


https://www.businessinsider.com/amtrak- ... ght-2021-6

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I wouldn’t be surprised if the bulk of the freight money was to make Amtrak’s life easier and grease the Class Is into being more accommodating.

Don't disagree. That's why I mentioned Tower 55 in Fort Worth. It's a nightmare for UP, BNSF and indirectly impacts the TRE.

Then there's the Brighton Park crossover in Chicago, Grand Crossing in Chicago, and probably a few other in Chicago.... (see a trend?).

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