MHSRA Statement on House T&I Markup of PRRIA 2015

Statement of Richard Harnish, executive director of the Midwest High Speed Rail Association (MHSRA), in response to Feb. 12 House Committee on Transportation & Infrastructure markup of the Passenger Rail Reform & Investment Act of 2015 (H.R. 749).

“The bill proposed by the House T&I Committee, which has similar low rates of funding as previous years, will not provide the national rail network our economy needs to thrive in the 21st century.”

“This bill would authorize Amtrak and other intercity passenger rail service for the next five years at a piddling $1.8 billion per year. That means another five years of declining service when the system should be rapidly expanding.”

“The Federal Railroad Administration has established that $5 billion per year is the minimum required to grow the system. The American Public Transportation Association has shown that $9.5 billion is needed to support the current project pipeline and continue Amtrak’s funding. The National Association of Railroad Passengers has identified nearly $200 billion in projects requested by state or local governments. Congress needs to do a lot better.”

“This insufficient funding comes at a time when Amtrak ridership is rapidly growing. As more and more American turn towards alternative modes of transportation, like inter-city trains, Congress is failing to plan for the future.”

“Every year that passes without an investment in expanding our system, is another year we fall behind our competitors in Europe and Asia.”