A BOSTON GLOBE EDITORIAL
Trains and cars and planes

February 1, 2003

The recent opening of the last and costliest stretch of the nation's interstate highway system - the $6.5 billion link between the Massachusetts Turnpike and Logan Airport - is a reminder that the nation is entering a new and uncertain era in intercity transportation. While population grows, the nation is, for good reason, simply not building any more interstate highways, and two alternatives - air and rail - are both in dire financial straits. This is no way to run a transportation system.

A better way would be to give the public more convenient options for travel, not least by improving trains as a choice for trips of 300 miles or fewer. A 21st-century system would also include urban transport centers like Boston's South Station, which link trains and intercity buses, as well as rail connections to most major airports. The more interconnected the system is, the more likely travelers will leave their cars at home for intercity trips, reducing fuel waste and air pollution.

This session of Congress provides a chance to look at three different transportation systems as part of a whole: The laws governing rail, aviation, and highways are all up for renewal. While one omnibus bill for all three is probably not practical, forward-looking legislators should ensure that legislation for one mode does not conflict with goals for the others. Along the Northeast Corridor, for instance, any airport expansions should be aimed at serving long-distance flights, not the shorter trips that Amtrak can accommodate.

Both Amtrak and the airlines need help. The passenger rail line came close to shutting down last summer because of the inadequacy of federal subsidies. Three airlines are in bankruptcy, while others post huge quarterly losses. According to Hank Dittmar, cofounder of Reconnecting America, a nonprofit advocacy group for transportation reform, the airline industry has operated at a net loss since Congress deregulated it in the 1970s.

Last week, Amtrak's president, David Gunn, said it would need $10 billion over the next five years to run its trains and repair its infrastructure. He also said the Bush administration's plan to break up Amtrak and sell some of its routes to private bidders is unrealistic. ''There is no one in the private sector dying to take over Amtrak,'' he said. Another myth is that Amtrak under any ownership can be run at a profit when both its operating costs and backlogged infrastructure work are taken into consideration.

If Congress takes this year's chance to see the big picture of transportation, it will consider a dedicated revenue source for Amtrak, such as a share of the gasoline tax, and a greater focus by Amtrak on the populated corridors where rail travel is most practical. Beyond that, lawmakers should see all modes of intercity travel as part of one web, not three.

This story ran on page A14 of the Boston Globe on 2/1/2003.
© Copyright 2003 Globe Newspaper Company.
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