Denver – Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet joined a group of bipartisan colleagues in a letter to the President of Amtrak, William Flynn, opposing their plans to terminate one out of every five employees – putting thousands out of work — and reducing the hours of operation of the National Network long distance trains, including the Southwest Chief. Bennet and his colleagues stressed the need to protect these jobs and the local economies they support throughout the country, and questioned Amtrak on what is needed to continue their services at full capacity.
“We are deeply concerned by the downsizing plan outlined in your supplemental funding request and believe it to be contrary to public interest. These cuts would not only dramatically reduce the utility of the nation’s passenger rail network, but would also ignore Congressional intent to expedite economic recovery following the pandemic,” wrote Bennet and the senators. “In your FY2021 supplemental funding request you stated ‘[w]e understand how important Amtrak service is to the nation and, particularly, small communities across the nation where we play a unique role in connecting these communities to the rest of America.’ Your request, unfortunately, does not reflect that understanding.”
Through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, Congress provided Amtrak with $1.02 billion to alleviate economic impact, yet, Amtrak’s plan to terminate one out of every five employees would put thousands of Americans out of work at a time when millions of Americans have lost their jobs. The plan also calls for reducing the frequency of all National Network long-distance trains, while consolidating three routes into one, thus greatly reducing Amtrak’s ability to operate its Network at full capacity. These actions will eliminate thousands of points of connection and dramatically reduce the utility of Amtrak as a transportation provider, irrevocably hurting hundreds of communities and small towns already devastated by the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.
Bennet has long worked to preserve and support the Southwest Chief, and was honored by the Rail Passengers Association with the Golden Spike Award for his work to preserve the route last April. On August 1, 2018, the Senate approved the senators’ amendment to maintain Southwest Chief train services. Bennet continues to support this rail line, and the entire National Network, during each appropriations season.
The Southwest Chief runs between Chicago and Los Angeles and connects towns and cities in Colorado, Kansas, Illinois, Missouri, Iowa, New Mexico, Arizona, and California, and provides passenger train and long-distance passenger service, particularly through rural communities. The Southwest Chief, which runs daily, is now at risk of moving to service just three times per week under Amtrak’s proposed plans.
In addition to Bennet, the letter was signed by U.S. Senators Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Tom Udall (D-N.M.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), and John Hoeven (R-N.D.).
The text of the letter is available HERE and below.
Dear Mr. Flynn,
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic Congress passed the CARES Act, which provided Amtrak with $1.02 billion to alleviate the severe economic impact COVID-19 produced. You have asked Congress to provide record levels of taxpayer funding, yet, in your supplemental funding request for Fiscal Year 2021 you are proposing to cut service and staff during an unprecedented time. We are deeply concerned by the downsizing plan outlined in your supplemental funding request and believe it to be contrary to public interest. These cuts would not only dramatically reduce the utility of the nation’s passenger rail network, but would also ignore Congressional intent to expedite economic recovery following the pandemic.
Amtrak’s plan to terminate one out of every five employees would put thousands of Americans out of work at a time when millions of Americans have lost their jobs. This severe reduction in workforce raises serious doubts about whether a realistic plan exists for fully restoring service in a timely fashion. Your plan also calls for reducing the frequency of all National Network longdistance trains, while consolidating three routes into one, thus greatly reducing Amtrak’s ability to operate its Network at full capacity. These actions will eliminate thousands of points of connection and dramatically reduce the utility of Amtrak as a transportation provider, irrevocably hurting hundreds of communities and small towns already devastated by the COVID19 pandemic.
In your FY2021 supplemental funding request you stated “[w]e understand how important Amtrak service is to the nation and, particularly, small communities across the nation where we play a unique role in connecting these communities to the rest of America.” Your request, unfortunately, does not reflect that understanding.
As Congress considers your supplementary request for FY2021, we ask that you provide the following information:
- How much would it cost to maintain the current service levels on all long-distance routes?
- How does the cost of retaining the current workforce in active status, ready to return to work, compare with that of hiring and training new employees?
- By reducing the workforce, what is your desired outcome? Why?
- What ridership metrics will Amtrak use to decide when to restore capacity, and how will they account for the reduced demand signal resulting from fewer frequencies and connections? Do you plan to restore service in phases?
- You wrote restoring these frequencies will be “subject to adequate funding;” What does Amtrak consider adequate funding?
Thank you for your time and cooperation, we look forward to your response.
Sincerely,