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MILWAUKEE ROAD LOCOMOTIVES
- Volume Five -
Second Generation Six-Axle EMD & GE Locomotives plus Rebuilt SD10s, and Slug Sets
PICTURE THE MID-21ST CENTURY passenger train map in America: quite different from the map in the decades of late 20th/early 21st centuries. The opportunities and possi- bilities for rail passenger growth were pon- dered by four specialists with ideas galore on how the passenger train network can be- gin (has begun?) to evolve as the second decade in a young century moves forward. Those panelists participated in the annual Passenger Trains on Freight Railroads, held once again here in Washington under the auspices of Railway Age of Simmons-Board- man Publishing. Sharing their thoughts from different per- spectives and taking questions from the con- ference attendees was a diverse panel. John Heffner is railroad attorney at the Washing- ton law firm Strasburger and Price LLP. Eu- gene “Gene” Skoropowski is the Senior Vice President of Passenger Rail Development for the All Aboard Florida passenger rail project. This is the ambitiously planned pri- vately operated (frequent) passenger train service from Orlando to Miami, Florida. Sko- ropowski is best known for his success in up- grading California’s Capitol Corridor serv- ice, now third busiest corridor (behind only the Northeast and Pacific Surfliner opera- tions). He appears well on the way to a re- peat performance with All Aboard Florida. Ed Ellis is president of Iowa Pacific Hold- ings, which owns and operates many rail- roads here and abroad. Already his Saratoga & North Creek railroad in upper New York State does a bustling freight and passenger business, including a connection with Am- trak. Joe McHugh is Amtrak’s Vice Presi- dent for Governments and Corporate Com- munications. Having worked under several Amtrak CEO’s, he is the “go-to” guy on Capi- tol Hill and elsewhere for information re- garding what has been “America’s passenger railroad” since 1971.
Thomas J. Strauss
This is the fifth volume in a series of books featuring an in depth look at the motive power of THE MILWAUKEE ROAD. Second Generation 6-axle EMD & GE locomotives, SD10 rebuilds, and Slug Sets are featured in this lavishly illustrat- ed title. See these locomotives at work across the vast sys- tem from photos by many superb rail photographers. There are hundreds of action and roster photos, all in full color— A Modelers Delight! —Limited Print Run / Don’t miss out!
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16 DECEMBER 2013 •
RAILFAN.COM
The Possibilities As America’s population grows, so too will the availability of passenger rail service. That is the long and short of what is envi- sioned as a mixture of private, state, and Amtrak-operated trains, connecting with longer-distance services. These in turn will connect America’s large cities with rural communities as it does now, except the fu- ture has potential for more towns plugged into an enlarged network. So what does this foursome envision? From different perspec- tives, they all see an America better connect- ed by its rail passenger network. “More cohesion, instead of the piecemeal routings here and there,” says Heffner. “The entire picture,” he tells us, “is likely less monolithic or under one entity known as Amtrak,” though (again) Amtrak will re- main the “spine [my term, not his]” of inter- city passenger operations.
Big Change in 2008
Some of the issues explored by the panel stemmed from the Passenger Railroad In- vestment and Improvement Act (PRIIA).
This measure was passed toward the end of the pre-election congressional session of 2008. (The PTC crash-prevention legislation was enacted within hours, but through sep- arate legislation.) Panelist Joe McHugh says PRIIA, as Am- trak interprets it, requires that trains run- ning under 750 miles (excluding the North- east
Corridor) must have a share of
operating costs covered by regional, or other non-Amtrak, entities. As it happens, a couple of the trains in Vir- ginia actually cover their direct costs. PRIIA granted the (under 750 miles) operations five years to find other outside funding or come up with the money themselves (from whatev- er sources). Otherwise, the PRIIA trains would be discontinued. That deadline came and went in the fall of 2013. All 19 of the PRI- IA trains found alternative funding by then, and thus they continue for at least another year. It’s believed more of the load involved in these will be assumed by local sources. Eventually, one of several things can hap- pen with any of the trains that are unable to come up with an alternative public source of support, perhaps a private
operator, of
which there are many short and medium distance lines. That circumstance could free up Amtrak to use more of its equipment for longer national operations. But that is one of many possibilities. As Amtrak spokesman Steve Kulm explains to R&R, “States contin- ue to choose an operator other than Amtrak. Many states already have their own equip- ment and/or are now building their own equipment.”
Bar the Door
The more revolutionary effect on passenger railroading could create nothing so much as the metaphoric caged animals let loose to run wild. Heffner says there is no end to po- tential nationwide expansion, possibly a combination of Amtrak and non-Amtrak op- erators, some under contract to state or re- gional government agencies. It may be freight railroads, perhaps short lines or re- gionals deciding just to run their own pas- senger service. The scenario could posit in- dependent operators contracting with public agencies or public agencies running the service directly themselves (think possibly Metro North or New Jersey Transit.) Yet other scenarios may include high-
speed operations outside of Amtrak, as for example the Texas High Speed service (sev- eral of such options are on the table in the Lone Star State) or the California High Speed Rail Authority.
All Together Now “My hope,
feeling, and desire,” explains
Heffner, “is that it will all be coordinated so that a member of the public wanting to go by rail from Point A to Point B doesn’t have the sort of mess you have with an airline when you want to go to a town in [South Dakota, for example], you might get off and on a series of airlines [and also] buying separate trans- portation. That would not be cost-effective.”
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