Amtrak Access Fees

[[e-mail] [Canadian-Passenger-Rail]]

The subject of Amtrak payments to freight railroads has come up many times. While this report is somewhat dated i believe the basic concept still applies:

https://www.oig.dot.gov/sites/default/files/AMTRAK%20Access%20Fees%20%28Final%20redacted3%29.pdf https://www.oig.dot.gov/sites/default/files/AMTRAK%20Access%20Fees%20%28Final%20redacted3%29.pdf

In addition this Amtrak "fact sheet" provides some more current numbers. Based on these numbers Amtrak is paying around $5 train mile. They don't make it easy to determine what railroad gets what amount:

Seventy two percent of the miles traveled by Amtrak trains are on tracks owned
by other railroads. Known as “host railroads,” they range from large publicly
traded companies based in the U.S. or Canada, to state and local government
agencies and small businesses. Amtrak pays these host railroads for use of their
track and other resources required to operate Amtrak trains, with incentives for
on time dispatching. Those payments were for nearly 26 million train miles (one
train mile = a mile of track usage by each train) in FY2011 and totaled more than
$124 million.

The six largest host railroads for Amtrak trains are:
○BNSF Railway, 6.5million train miles
○Union Pacific Railroad, 6.0 million train miles
○CSX Transportation, 5.9million train miles
○Norfolk Southern Railway, 2.5 million train miles
○Canadian National Railway, 1.4 million train miles
○Metro North Railroad, 1.3 million train miles


Ira Silverman
Rockville MD


Seventy
-
two
percent of the miles traveled by Amtrak trains are on tracks owned
by other railroads. Known as “host railroads,” they
range from large publicly
traded companies based in the U.S. or
Canada, to state and local government
agencies and small businesses. Amtrak pays these host railroads for use of their
track and other resources required to operate Amtrak trains, with incentives for
on
-
time dispatching.
Those payments were for
nearly
26
million train miles (one
train mile = a mile of track usage by each train) in FY
20
11
and totaled more
than $
124
million.
The six largest host railroads for Amtrak trains are:
○
BNSF Railway, 6.
5
million train miles
○
Union Pacific Railroad,
6.
0
million train miles
○
CSX Transportation, 5.
9
million train miles
○
Norfolk Southern Railway, 2.
5
million train miles
○
C
anadian
N
ational
R
ailway,
1.
4
million train miles
○
Metro North R
ailroad, 1.
3
million train miles

[xcnken-/[e-mail] [Canadian-Passenger-Rail]]

Thanks for that Mr. Silverman.


So little information is available on this subject here and in the US. It just makes me conclude that both the rr's and Amtrak or Via are too embarrassed. To explain how many millions of $$$ they exchange with each other.


When I was out in California on a passenger run a few years ago a train conductor confirmed the same. That contractual figures are not publicly available.


The only time they come up is when there's a service meltdown. As a former AMT head i.e. Gauthier did with CP.


Thanks again. K. Wadden Pointe Claire Qc

['Mark W. Walton' [e-mail] [Canadian-Passenger-Rail]]

I seem to remember a court case involving CP and West Coast Express in Vancouver some years ago. Someone, I forget who, had gone to court to force disclosure of WCX’s payments to CP, who of course fought tooth and nail. CP lost, and released the information.

Mark Walton
<mailto:mark.walton-***@public.gmane.org> mark.walton-***@public.gmane.org

From: Canadian-Passenger-Rail-***@public.gmane.org [mailto:Canadian-Passenger-Rail-***@public.gmane.org]
Sent: Monday, October 06, 2014 7:25 PM
To: Canadian-Passenger-Rail-***@public.gmane.org
Subject: [CanPassRail] Re: Amtrak Access Fees
Thanks for that Mr. Silverman.
So little information is available on this subject here and in the US. It just makes me conclude that both the rr's and Amtrak or Via are too embarrassed. To explain how many millions of $$$ they exchange with each other.
When I was out in California on a passenger run a few years ago a train conductor confirmed the same. That contractual figures are not publicly available.
The only time they come up is when there's a service meltdown. As a former AMT head i.e. Gauthier did with CP.
Thanks again. K. Wadden Pointe Claire Qc
_____

Posted by: xcnken-/***@public.gmane.org
_____