Hotline #680

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Amtrak's northbound Silver Star derailed at Lugoff, S.C., on CSX's former Seaboard Air Line, at 5:00 am on July 31. Of the total 392 passengers and crew on board, seven* passengers were killed and 76 were injured, with 18 of those needed hospitalization. Most of the train passed over a switch leading to an industrial siding, but the last six cars did not and derailed, sideswiping a row of freight cars on the siding. The six cars were from the Miami section -- a Heritage sleeper, an Amfleet lounge, three Amfleet coaches for New York and the Amfleet coach for Chicago. Most injuries occurred in the Chicago coach.

[*Note -- An eighth died some time later.]

Investigators found there was a small gap at the rail contact point on the siding side of the switch. They also found a pin, which was missing from the electronic switch activator, rusted and buried beneath the activator, indicating it had fallen out some time before. The switch had been visually inspected on July 30 and mechanically inspected by CSX twice this year, with no faults detected. Four trains passed over the switch between the July 30 inspection and the accident. It was not immediately clear if the missing pin had anything to do with the contact point gap. Investigators have found no problem with the Amtrak equipment.

Emergency response time was criticized by some of the passengers. Investigators said CSX dispatchers didn't call county emergency officials until ten minutes after being radioed by the Amtrak engineer. The first ambulance arrived 45 minutes after the accident.

The last passenger fatalities on Amtrak occurred during the Chase, Md., wreck on January 4, 1987, when 15 passengers died. The period since then is the longest period of time Amtrak has ever gone without a passenger fatality. Counting the Star, 46 passengers have died in Amtrak accidents over the course of 20+ years, resulting in a fatality rate far lower than the automobile's and still comparable to the airplane's.

The House Ways and Means Committee narrowly approved the five-cent gas-tax increase in the surface transportation bill, H.R.2950. However, only 3.75 cents would go to highway and transit projects. The rest would be "withheld from the trust fund," which may just be another way of saying "deficit reduction." There would still be an unacceptably high four-to-one ration between highway and transit projects.

But last night, House Democratic leadership decided to postpone floor debate of H.R.2950 until after Congress returns from recess on September 11. Speaker Foley and Public Works Chairman Roe apparently recognized that there would be widespread Democratic defection if the bill stayed in its present form. Many Democrats overreacted in complaining that the nickel gas-tax increase would be regressive. Whether H.R.2950 takes on new life in September without the nickel or as a simple one-year extension of the present law, there will be vast differences with the Senate bill to be resolved in conference.

Mark-up of the Senate 1992 DOT appropriations bill also has been postponed until September.

Rail carriers and the United Transportation Union both filed suits in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia regarding the law Congress passed in April ending the freight rail strike. Labor wants the law overturned because they say it limits their right to judicial review, but so far only the UTU has filed suit. The railroads want a declaratory judgment saying Congress acted properly.

The Alabama Association of Railroad Passengers reports that Florida Governor Chiles authorized $6.5 million for track and station work in northern Florida to prepare for extending the Sunset Limited to Jacksonville. This came after a meeting between Chiles and Amtrak President Graham Claytor.

Another Southern Pacific freight train derailed, spilling hazardous waste July 28 on the Coast Line at Sea Cliff, just west of Ventura, Cal. The freight train caught fire and several hundred people had to be evacuated. Service on Amtrak's Coast Starlight and Santa Barbara trains was disrupted.

The Los Angeles County Transportation Commission approved a $17-million purchase of four miles of Union Pacific line leading to Union Station, plus trackage rights to Riverside, to be used for commuter trains. UP had dropped from its asking price of $48 million. Talks are still proceeding with Santa Fe, who wants $1.3 billion for 300 miles of track. The county agency feels that is too much and has offered $300 million.

Amtrak's new, $600,000 mechanical facility in Tampa opens tomorrow. It will house 127 employees from the Mechanical, Materials Management, Passenger Services, and Transportation Departments.

William H. Dempsey, president of the Association of American Railroads since 1977, announced his retirement last week.

Effective with Hotline #682 on August 16, this service will be converted to a 900 number. Please note that this is a week later than previously announced. This service has been provided free of charge for the past 11 years for the use of NARP members. The NARP Hotline takes an incredible amount of time each week to write and edit, and that cost all comes from NARP members' dues. However, only an average of less than 4% of the total membership takes advantage of this service, with the other 96% of the members subsidizing them. Therefore, an experiment will be made with the 900 number to see if it can cover its own costs. If the experiment is unsuccessful, the free service will be restored. If the experiment is successful, it could mean preventing a general dues increase, given the terrible effect the recession has had on NARP finances.

The first ten seconds of each call will be free, so callers may see if they already have heard a particular message before being charged. Then, the cost of the first full minute will be $2.00, and $1.00 for each additional minute. As always, an effort will be made to place national news first in sequence, so callers may hang up at any time. Typical Hotlines have been running five-to-six minutes. The present number will still be available to advise callers of the new number. The new 900 number will also be announced in next week's Hotline.