The congestion on America's highways and in its airports is in many respects the result of successful, long term, public investments in the related infrastructure, the Senators contend, but there has not been an equivalent investment in the nation's rail system. Time has come to change that, they said, and the "American Railroad Revitalization, Investment and Enhancement Act" (ARRIVE 21), S. 1961, introduced Tuesday evening, provides the policy framework to get it done. "For passenger rail to be successful, its infrastructure must be developed through the kind of bold federal leadership we exercised for our other modes of transportation," said Sen. Hollings, ranking member of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee. "That's why my colleagues and I are pleased to introduce this landmark piece of legislation. It's designed to change the way we think about financing passenger rail service, and it's designed to grow our passenger rail system into the world-class system it should be."
The legislation calls for a 6-year, $42 billion investment in U.S. rail infrastructure and service to expand high-speed passenger rail in congested corridors, strengthen Amtrak, improve freight mobility, and better balance nation's transportation system. And for the first time, it puts rail on par with the nation's highway and aviation infrastructure by creating a guaranteed, rail-specific funding source.
ARRIVE 21 creates a non-profit, public-private partnership - the Rail Infrastructure Finance Corporation (RIFCO) - to issue $30 billion in tax-credit bonds over 6 years to fund rail infrastructure development. The bill authorizes RIFCO to award discretionary capital grants to states and Amtrak for high-speed rail and intercity passenger rail projects. The bill also authorizes formula grants to all states for freight rail capital projects that benefit the public.
Passenger and freight rail projects eligible for funding through RIFCO include planning, rail line rehabilitation and upgrades, rail safety and security projects, passenger rail equipment acquisition, station improvements, and intermodal facilities development. In order to receive grants, states must prepare a state rail plan and provide a 20% non-federal funding match to RIFCO, similar to what states currently do for other transportation investments. Prior to issuing grants, RIFCO will deposit a portion of the bond proceeds, along with state matching funds, into a secure and continually monitored repayment fund managed by the RIFCO investment trust to retire the debt over the life of the bonds.
"ARRIVE 21 provides our states and the nation with a fiscally responsible and innovative opportunity to enhance our rail transportation system," said Sen. Carper. "We owe it to the American people to move towards the type of high-quality, high-speed intercity passenger rail service that Americans deserve, while meeting the ever-growing demands that increased trade and our changing economy are placing on our freight system."
"ARRIVE 21 will strengthen passenger and freight rail service in the Northeast," said Sen. Collins. "It gives states more flexibility in distributing funding among their different rail priorities. In Maine, ARRIVE 21 will help the state to maintain and expand the new Downeaster passenger rail service between Portland and Boston with greater efficiency."
The measure also provides incentives for future rail-related planning, by requiring states to craft state rail plans in order to be eligible for funding from RIFCO. It directs the federal government to develop a national rail plan and a "50-Year Intermodal Blueprint" to promote an efficient transportation system, and it authorizes additional funds for planning of high-speed rail projects.
"I firmly believe that nation-wide investment in freight and passenger rail infrastructure will invite rewards in the form of reduced congestion, improved environmental quality, and improved mobility options for our nation's travelers," said Sen. Jeffords. "ARRIVE 21 encourages states, and the federal government, to more fully integrate freight and passenger rail into the surface transportation system. Improved rail planning policy, at both the federal and state levels, will enhance the efficiency and longevity of our transportation system and will promote safe, efficient, and environmentally sound transportation options."
"Rail infrastructure is crucial to the American economy, both in commerce and passenger service," stated Sen. Specter. "Amtrak and our nation''s freight lines need this investment to ensure their continuing viability. I am happy to join my colleagues in this effort."
"Today's passenger and freight railroads are essential components of our surface transportation system," said Sen. Biden. "With the public sector investment made possible by ARRIVE 21, more rail service can improve our existing transportation network, while benefiting the environment and reducing our dependency on foreign oil."
ARRIVE 21 adopts many of the authorizations originally included in S. 1991, the "National Defense Rail Act," legislation approved by the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee by a vote of 20-3 in the 107th session, including a one-time $515 million for rail security needs and assessments.
The bill includes an average of $1.5 billion in annual funding authorizations for Amtrak''s capital and operating expenses, including station and facility improvements, environmental compliance, and debt retirement. These funds will enable Amtrak to operate its current national system, address its backlog of urgent capital projects and improve its capacity to accommodate projected growth in traffic, especially in the Northeast Corridor, which has become an invaluable transportation asset to passengers traveling between Washington, D.C. and Boston.
In addition to these funds, the states and Amtrak can pursue major intercity passenger rail capital improvements and equipment acquisition through RIFCO, with reductions in Amtrak's capital authorizations for projects funded through RIFCO capital grants. Through this process, the amount needed for annual Amtrak appropriation for capital will be reduced over the life of the reauthorization, as RIFCO begins to finance a growing share of Amtrak's capital needs.
As is the case today, operating costs on long distance trains will be covered by Amtrak's annual appropriation, while states will share the costs with Amtrak for operations of short distance corridors. For such shot distance corridors, ARRIVE 21 infuses greater fairness into the current system by requiring parity between Amtrak and all states for cost sharing, putting an end to disparate treatment among the states that contract with Amtrak to provide corridor service.
ARRIVE 21 also requires a whole host of new Amtrak reforms including accounting a five-year financial plan which Amtrak will submit on an annual basis to detail categories of projected capital and operating cash flows; a quarterly grant process for Amtrak through the U.S. Department of Transportation; the creation of new service metrics that will improve the monitoring and quantification of Amtrak service performance and quality; and others.
The bill has been referred the Senate Commerce Committee.