by Yoav Hagler, Associate Planner, RPA
As Congress debates this week how much money to put toward infrastructure investment as part of an economic stimulus package, most people have come to understand the importance of at least maintaining our transportation infrastructure in a state of good repair.
These same people might have a more difficult time, however, accepting that Amtrak deserves to be improved beyond a state-of-good-repair, particularly if that will cost U.S. taxpayers several billion dollars.
Such improvements are worth the money though, and we'll explain why. But first some background.
With the passage of the Rail Safety Enhancement Act late last year, the federal government has committed (assuming the authorized funding is appropriated) $13 billion over five years to Amtrak, including $5 billion to bring the Northeast Corridor (from Boston to Washington DC) to a state of good repair.
The bill also mandates that Amtrak prepare a plan outlining what it will take to improve trip times by 15 minutes, and 30 minutes, between the two most heavily traveled routes in the Amtrak system, Boston to New York and New York to Washington DC. These are the improvements that go beyond a state of good repair, and which will certainly have a price tag attached.
Naysayers may argue that 15-minute cuts in trip times - the time it takes to brew a cup of coffee, read a section of the newspaper, or walk the dog - are not worth billions of dollars these improvements are likely to cost.
They are wrong, and here's why.
First, a simplified version of a standard economic model that puts dollar figures on time shows that a 15-minute reduction in trip time would be worth about $100 million a year at current volumes. But that's just the tip of the iceberg.
Improvements to Amtrak's inter-city rail system will also help every single commuter rail system in the region. Seven different commuter rail lines share the tracks and corridor that Amtrak uses. Last year, Amtrak carried 13 million people on the Northeast corridor between Boston and Washington DC. That's a lot of people. But the commuter rail systems carried more than 200 million passengers. That's even more people. In fact, it's 75 percent of all the commuter rail ridership in the nation.
Second, making the Northeast corridor lines faster and more reliable would induce more people to choose rail over air for travel within the megaregion. This in turn would free up valuable space in our overcrowded Northeast airports, making landing slots available for more economically valuable, longer-haul flights. Passenger rail already accounts for nearly two-thirds of the combined air/rail market between New York and Washington and half of the market between New York and Boston. Bringing both of these shares to close to 100 percent, as is the case between many European city-pairs at this distance, would make a lot of sense.
Right now, 20 percent of all the flights out of the New York metro airports are less than 350 miles, the majority of which are to two destinations, Boston and DC. More than 150 daily flights from the New York metro area are destined for Boston and Washington. Faster, more frequent and more reliable Amtrak service would make rail competitive with these short-haul flights, particularly for time-conscious business travelers.
Third and finally, track improvements will not only increase speed, they will also add capacity. They will enable millions of additional people to travel along and within this corridor, which in turn, will enable the Northeast to absorb more gracefully the additional 16 million people expected here by mid-century. Improving the central train corridor of the Northeast is not only an economic development tool, not only a quality of life tool, it's a central part of a long-term growth plan for the region. And part of that growth plan should be a lower carbon footprint for the region, something better rail travel is an integral part of. It enables people to live more comfortably in closer proximity to each other.
It's for all these reasons and more that the recent commitment made by the federal government to intercity passenger rail is such an important first step.
As Congress debates this week how much money to put toward infrastructure investment as part of an economic stimulus package, most people have come to understand the importance of at least maintaining our transportation infrastructure in a state of good repair.
These same people might have a more difficult time, however, accepting that Amtrak deserves to be improved beyond a state-of-good-repair, particularly if that will cost U.S. taxpayers several billion dollars.
Such improvements are worth the money though, and we'll explain why. But first some background.
With the passage of the Rail Safety Enhancement Act late last year, the federal government has committed (assuming the authorized funding is appropriated) $13 billion over five years to Amtrak, including $5 billion to bring the Northeast Corridor (from Boston to Washington DC) to a state of good repair.
The bill also mandates that Amtrak prepare a plan outlining what it will take to improve trip times by 15 minutes, and 30 minutes, between the two most heavily traveled routes in the Amtrak system, Boston to New York and New York to Washington DC. These are the improvements that go beyond a state of good repair, and which will certainly have a price tag attached.
Naysayers may argue that 15-minute cuts in trip times - the time it takes to brew a cup of coffee, read a section of the newspaper, or walk the dog - are not worth billions of dollars these improvements are likely to cost.
They are wrong, and here's why.
First, a simplified version of a standard economic model that puts dollar figures on time shows that a 15-minute reduction in trip time would be worth about $100 million a year at current volumes. But that's just the tip of the iceberg.
Improvements to Amtrak's inter-city rail system will also help every single commuter rail system in the region. Seven different commuter rail lines share the tracks and corridor that Amtrak uses. Last year, Amtrak carried 13 million people on the Northeast corridor between Boston and Washington DC. That's a lot of people. But the commuter rail systems carried more than 200 million passengers. That's even more people. In fact, it's 75 percent of all the commuter rail ridership in the nation.
Second, making the Northeast corridor lines faster and more reliable would induce more people to choose rail over air for travel within the megaregion. This in turn would free up valuable space in our overcrowded Northeast airports, making landing slots available for more economically valuable, longer-haul flights. Passenger rail already accounts for nearly two-thirds of the combined air/rail market between New York and Washington and half of the market between New York and Boston. Bringing both of these shares to close to 100 percent, as is the case between many European city-pairs at this distance, would make a lot of sense.
Right now, 20 percent of all the flights out of the New York metro airports are less than 350 miles, the majority of which are to two destinations, Boston and DC. More than 150 daily flights from the New York metro area are destined for Boston and Washington. Faster, more frequent and more reliable Amtrak service would make rail competitive with these short-haul flights, particularly for time-conscious business travelers.
Third and finally, track improvements will not only increase speed, they will also add capacity. They will enable millions of additional people to travel along and within this corridor, which in turn, will enable the Northeast to absorb more gracefully the additional 16 million people expected here by mid-century. Improving the central train corridor of the Northeast is not only an economic development tool, not only a quality of life tool, it's a central part of a long-term growth plan for the region. And part of that growth plan should be a lower carbon footprint for the region, something better rail travel is an integral part of. It enables people to live more comfortably in closer proximity to each other.
It's for all these reasons and more that the recent commitment made by the federal government to intercity passenger rail is such an important first step.
@RegionalPlan