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A few important things have occurred during the first part of this week that warrant mentioning now. But first ...
Since last year Amtrak Intercity annulled most of the Chicago hub service during parts of December and much of January allegedly because of bad Winter weather, consider this formal notice that the weather has turned cold, the days are growing shorter, and the leaves have fallen from trees. All of this information put together can only mean one thing: Winter is coming.
Last year, Amtrak Chicago management acted as if they were caught unaware and off guard that Winter was an annual event in Chicago that required preplanning and having supplies, equipment, and personnel ready to deal with frigid temperatures.
Consider this a friendly warning: Winter is coming this year, too. It will again be cold in Chicago with snow, sleet, and other nasty natural occurrences we rarely have to deal with here in Northeast Florida.
So, be prepared. Go to the local hardware store and buy some rock salt. Pick up a snow shovel, too. Maybe look at some portable heaters.
Whatever you do, just make sure the rolling stock stays heated and warm, and the switches don't freeze. When that white stuff starts to come out of the sky, plan for and expect delays so you can meet schedules.
As to all of that non-passenger stuff, commonly referred to as mail and express, consider Plan B for handling it in the cold (it likes cold weather, passengers don't), while first taking care of the needs of passengers and crew.
We sincerely hope someone is listening and planning. If another Winter season of annulments occurs because someone forgot to expect Winter, then the whole situation is hopeless.
Eight years ago when former Governor Christine Todd Whitman won office, she ousted a Democrat from office. Her new administration was made up of Republicans, including the appointed head of New Jersey Transit. This left Tom Downs, the Democrat who was head of NJT without a job. Does this sound familiar?
Mr. Downs, being a good party bureaucrat, had to have a soft landing. The newly minted Clinton Administration took the case of Mr. Downs seriously, and wanted to make sure he had a comfortable place to work. What to do? It just so happened that the presidency of Amtrak was open at that time, since the venerable Graham Claytor had recently retired.
A perfect solution was found, and a marriage was made in heaven. Tom Downs became the new President and CEO of Amtrak. Naturally, he wanted to be surrounded by people who thought like him (read that transit people) and he also wanted to take care of some of his former employees at NJT who may not fair so well under a new Republican administration.
Thus began the exodus from NJT to Amtrak, including a bureaucrat by the name of George Warrington.
When Mr. Downs was ousted by the Amtrak Board in a dispute over a labor contract, Mr. Warrington was persuaded to become Acting President. At the time, he loudly declared that his only interest was in the NEC, where he was currently President of that business group, and, therefore, was not a candidate for the national job permanently.
He swept into Washington and began cleaning house. He put together business plans. He made changes.
All the while, a search was on for a new president. Several candidates were identified and interviewed, including Andrew Selden. Near the end of the search process, suddenly, Mr. Warrington made a change and decided he did want the job permanently. He was interviewed by the board's search committee like everyone else. He shared his vision for Amtrak. The board, which at that time was made up exclusively of Easterners and Wisconsin Governor Tommy Thompson, decided they couldn't live without Mr. Warrington. He got the job.
Now, in a Reuters news story dated yesterday, November 6, 2001, the story says, "Warrington agrees that the current business model does not work" and goes on to say that before a plan will work, Congress must make some decision about the future of Amtrak.
Some other history of his tenure is instructive as well, again, from the same Reuters article:
"Carrying $3 billion in debt, government figures showed that Amtrak posted a cash loss of $405 million in the first eight months of fiscal 2001, $17 million more than the comparable period last year and $21 million worse than projected. Amtrak, which employs more than 25,000 people, will receive a $521 million federal subsidy this fiscal year.
"George Warrington, Amtrak's president and chief executive, has said that meeting the self-sufficiency mandate would require the company to take on more debt, mortgage assets and cut service dramatically."
With this record, Mr. Warrington's statement that his business plan does not work is an understatement, to say the least.
Take note of the last phrase, "cut service dramatically." Sounds ominous.
So, back to New Jersey. The Democrats are back in power. The Republican head of NJT will probably be looking for a new job.
Could we persuade Mr. Warrington that there is no place like home, and, maybe, for the sake of the country and the sake of passenger rail service everywhere in the United States, would he like to go back to NJT and help them for a while?
A check of the web site today confirmed this. Not even the original 1999 press releases that accompanied the MBNA unveiling can be found. Do you recall that the bad guys in Europe that used to rule the Soviet Union used to revise history, too, by making people and things simply disappear as if they never existed?
Does the disappearance of this plan mean, that, as a passenger railroad corporation with a national mandate, that Amtrak has no plans, whatsoever, to expand service beyond the NEC or what the fabled high speed corridors allegedly will do?
Will next month's less than 10 mile expansion of the national system from Jeffersonville, Kentucky across the river to downtown Louisville be the last expansion of the national long distance system?
Your humble correspondent and inquiring minds want to know.
In the same Reuters news report yesterday, Gilbert Carmichael, the venerable and revered Chairman of the Amtrak Reform Council was quoted as saying that the ARC is circulation a working document among its 11 members that will declare Amtrak unable to meet its self-sufficiency deadline next year. By law, the ARC is required to do this, if, in its collective opinion, the railroad is in hopeless financial shape.
Pardon all of us for a moment while we stand up and cheer wildly.
Prior to this, no one in Congress has had what it takes to actually stand up and say that Amtrak, as we know it is hopeless. No one wanted to "be responsible for shooting Bambi."
The ARC, that august body, is currently the only official body in Washington that is following the laws Congress made when writing the Amtrak Reform Act of 1997.
Congress has ignored the law, the Clinton administration wildly ignored the law, and Amtrak itself (as usual) has ignored the law. Everyone has done what they wanted, not what the law proscribed.
Here's the bottom line on what this means: The national debate has begun on the future of Amtrak. The Bush administration indicated last week that it is interested in taking the debate to a conclusion and doing something about "the Amtrak problem."
This proper and perfect action of the ARC will guarantee that the debate will take place, and that a new passenger rail organization will emerge from a clean slate.
This won't be a slap-together, keep it going for another five years affair. When the Amtrak authorization runs out at the end of next September, a bright, shiny new solution will take its place.
The patriots at the ARC are guaranteeing that by their actions. These wise people realize that the current situation is fatally flawed, but many good pieces of it can be taken and molded into a new organization that has all of the advantages needed for progressive passenger rail, without the flaws.
One such example is the leadership that is constantly displayed by the management of the Gulf Coast Business Group, based in New Orleans. This group of managers and employees constantly demonstrate how a well run part of Amtrak can have good trains (the City of New Orleans and the Crescent), the same resources to work with that the rest of Amtrak Intercity has, happy passengers, and a good overall performance record.
How do they do it? With leadership, not management. There is a great difference between a leader and a manager. The difference shows in New Orleans.
Our country doesn't hand out medals quickly or easily. But, the members of the ARC should get one for bravery. At the very least, they should get a great deal of credit for common sense.
Bruce Richardson
Jacksonville, Florida