Casey: Amtrak needs more federal money to improve passenger safety

Sen. Robert P. Casey (D., Pa.) and the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce called Friday for the restoration of $242 million for Amtrak that the House cut from next year's federal budget.

Casey and Lisa Crutchfield, the chamber's senior vice president of advocacy and public affairs, said Amtrak was an important economic engine for the region, critical for job growth and economic development.

They urged the Senate Appropriations subcommittee on transportation, housing, and urban development to include $1.4 billion for Amtrak in the budget for the fiscal year that starts Oct. 1.

That would be about the same as the $1.39 billion provided to Amtrak this year and higher than the $1.14 billion in the budget approved June 9 by the House.

The Obama administration asked Congress to give Amtrak $2.45 billion for next year.

Casey said Amtrak needed more money to improve safety and its decrepit infrastructure, and he cited the deadly derailment May 12 in Philadelphia's Port Richmond neighborhood that killed eight passengers and injured more than 200.

"We have to make the case, especially in the aftermath of a horrific tragedy, to make sure that folks in Washington know that Amtrak is essential, not only for the Northeast but for the whole country," Casey told reporters at 30th Street Station.

"We want to make these investments for safety, for job creation and economic growth."

Crutchfield said the area's businesses and workers needed a robust Amtrak to keep the region economically competitive.

"It is important that we fully fund Amtrak," Crutchfield said, "and ensure that it operates safely."

Casey said a key to improving safety on Amtrak was installation of Positive Train Control, a system that can prevent collisions and derailments like the May 12 accident.

Amtrak officials have said the railroad would install Positive Train Control by Dec. 31 on all the portions of the Northeast Corridor that it owns, including the section between New York and Washington.

The nation's passenger and major freight railroads face the year-end federal deadline for completing installation of positive train control. Although Amtrak and SEPTA say they expect to meet the deadline, most railroads have said they would not.

Casey said Friday that the Federal Railroad Administration might need to be "forcing and helping" railroads that couldn't meet the deadline, and he blamed Congress for not providing money to help railroads meet the federal mandate.

"If we're going to point the finger," he said, " ... we've got to make sure they have the resources to make those investments in safety that we expect them to make."

215-854-4587@nussbaumpaul