PA: Editorial: Trump may not like Amtrak, but it's good for Pittsburgh and the country

In December 2023, it appeared that Pennsylvania was poised to leverage a historic federal investment into its intercity train service: adding more trips to Harrisburg and New York City as well as expanding into the Midwest. But the uncertainty of federal funding under President Donald Trump is jeopardizing these long-delayed improvements, which promised major economic benefits for the Pittsburgh region.

While some federal funding is guaranteed, discretionary funds — or projects that have been awarded but are not yet contracted — could be withdrawn. This includes the $144 million slated to add a daily round trip to the existing service between Pittsburgh and New York City. Besides connecting to the Big Apple, the train would improve cross-state service to Harrisburg and Philadelphia, and many other locales in between.

Nevertheless, at a legislative hearing last week PennDOT Secretary Mike Carroll expressed optimism. Whether that optimism is candid or warranted — that's yet to be seen.

"I'm going to believe that a discretionary grant that was provided during the last administration would be honored by the new administration," he said in Harrisburg. "I'm going to live in a world where the commitments that were made, short of an obligation, will stand."

We'd like to live there, too, but thus far the evidence suggests the real world is rather less rational than Mr. Carroll's preferred world. The Trump administration, especially in its second incarnation, has not been characterized by stability and deference to precedent. And his first term wasn't good for passenger rail, either.

Only one month after his 2017 inauguration, Mr. Trump proposed cutting Amtrak's budget by 13%, centered mostly on halting new construction and long-distance subsidies. Amtrak's long-distance service will never turn a profit, but represents a celebration of America's transcontinental beauty, and making it accessible to everyday Americans.

You might say it's an investment in American greatness.

Meanwhile, Amtrak was breaking ridership records in the Northeast Corridor — the region most suited to high-speed rail — and brought its operating deficit down to $29.8 million. Amtrak was even projected to turn a profit before the pandemic disrupted transit trends.

For context, most rail agencies, including almost all in Europe, operate at a deficit and are subsidized by the government to keep fares affordable. This is because the connectedness provided by rail carries significant public benefits, both socially and economically.

In Trump's second term, with reality television personality Sean Duffy serving as U.S. Secretary of Transportation, Amtrak's future feels less than secure. Feasibility studies to map new routes connecting Pittsburgh and Chicago via Columbus and Fort Wayne may never happen. This would complement the Chicago to Washington (via Pittsburgh) " Capitol Limited," which has been temporarily replaced by the Chicago to Miami "Floridian."

Ohio, which rejected interstate rail funding for years, finally reopened to the idea in the 2020s. Without interstate teamwork, which usually requires some federal nudging and funding, these projects will be easy to abandon.

There is some hope. While maligning the overbudget and long-delayed high speed rail corridor planned between San Francisco and Los Angeles — a California state project — Mr. Duffy said that some rail projects did deserve federal funding. He pointed to Brightline West, the project meant to connect Los Angeles with Las Vegas by 2028.

Pittsburgh, despite the geographical challenges to its south and east, is a historic rail hub for a reason: It is located within a few hundred miles of nearly every major population center north of the Smokies and east of the Mississippi. While Mr. Carroll's optimism may seem naive in the face of the Trump tornado, there's good reason to invest in Pittsburgh passenger rail, for the region and for the country.

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