Version XXVII - This Was The Week That Was - An Amtrak Saga

November 9, 2001

Well … it’s hard to know what to say. This had to be the ULTIMATE week. Somebody finally decided to shoot Bambi.

1. For years, some opinion makers in the passenger rail arena have said that Amtrak would always just limp along, with nobody in Congress having the intestinal fortitude to go out on a limb and “shoot Bambi.” Passenger rail was just too much of an emotional issue for many people.

   Clearly, it took the ARC to accomplish the mission.

   Thank you, ARC. We’re sorry to see our old friend Bambi go. We’re glad you did what had to be done. It was the humane thing to do.

   But, we’re delighted to look forward to the future of Amtrak, Jr. with a clean slate and a renewed vigor towards building a truly national passenger railroad system that we can all support with pride and without prejudice.

   No one in an important decision making position has said that America should be without a long distance passenger railroad system.

   There will be life after Amtrak. And, it will be good. There will be long distance trains. There will be sleeping cars, dining cars, lounges and coaches.

   What will be gone are the fatal flaws that were built into the original incarnation of Amtrak. Flaws that 31 years ago were not a glaring as they are today. Flaws that have severely retarded the redevelopment of a strong and viable national passenger railroad system.

   People of religion believe in an afterlife. It’s the same here. You have to lose the present life to gain the next one. It’s all a matter of faith.

   Our current presidential administration and Congress have served us well in the war against terrorism that is raging. We are depending on them to do the right thing. According to newly minted poll numbers, the American public agrees they are doing the right thing. We have to put this same level of trust in the administration and Congress regarding passenger rail as we do for the war on terrorism.

   The ARC declaration is a done deal. There is no turning back.

   Congress does have some discretion. When you’re the guy making the law, you’re the guy that can make any other decision. They could decide that 90 days from now, sometime in early January just after the holiday season, may not be long enough to make a decision. They may extend the time by 30 or 60 or 90 days.

   In the meantime, the trains will keep running. It is highly unlikely any service running today will not be running the day a new system comes into place, whenever that day may be.

   The same front line employees and low and intermediate level of managers will continue to run the show. Their paychecks will continue to be issued, their health insurance will continue to be honored.

   When the new company comes, somebody is going to have to staff the company. Most likely, a huge percentage of the current Amtrak staff will join Amtrak, Jr.

   What can we expect of Amtrak, Jr.? A fresh attitude for one thing. A renewed purpose for another. Adequate attention from Congress and the federal treasury. A mandate to get it right this time.

   The Sunset Limited will still run coast to coast. The Kansas City Mule will still roar across the heartland. The NEC will still meet the demands of its passengers.

   One this is probably a sure bet: That silly term “guest” will probably be gone in Amtrak, Jr. A passenger will be a passenger. What a concept.

   Your humble correspondent looks brightly to the future with hope and anticipation. There is no fear, there is just a commitment to good passenger railroading.

2. Some old business will probably need to be cleared up before Amtrak, Jr. comes down the tracks.

   Yesterday’s filing of the $200 million lawsuit by Bombardier brings forward a high number of issues to be settled and worked out. While a lawsuit is not the most pleasant situation, it will help to bring to the public a full understanding of what has taken place on both sides of the contract these past five years or more.

   The bigger question, though, is how long it is going to take either federal law enforcement agencies or congressional investigative committees to act. Most of the feds are busy with terrorism issues, so it’s not hard to imagine congressional staffers sorting through this mess trying to figure out where to being.

   None of that should hinder the beginning of Amtrak, Jr., though. It’s just old business that needs to be cleared up in the right way.

With less verbosity than usual, that’s all that needs to be said this week.

The King is dead. Long live the King.