Northeast Corridor - Overview

Regional Plan AssociationSpring 2010

Rail: A Vital Economic Stimulant

Northeast Megaregion has a $2.4 Trillion Economy, 20% of the Nations GDP

Central business districts, and research and development clusters around universities, are the engines of the economy in the Northeast

Future economic growth depends on the ability to move goods and people quickly and reliably between the regions urban centers.

Congestion Relief

Airports are nearing capacity, made worse by the growth in short haul air travel within the megaregion. Over 20 percent of all flights out of the three New York City Area airports are less than 350 miles

Three Quarters of nation wide delays in theaviation systems originate in the New Yorkmetro regionRail/Air Market Share37%63%51%49%NY - DCNY - BOSAverage Daily Departures (2008)

Linked Economies

Brief History of NEC1971NY-DC GoalNY-DC ActualNY-BOS Goal1965NY-BOS Actual4:0019691976Deadline198119821986199120102hrs3hrs4hrs5hrsEvent

Brief History of NEC1971NY-DC GoalNY-DC ActualNY-BOS Goal1965NY-BOS Actual4:0019693:001976Deadline198119821986199120102hrs3hrs4hrs5hrsEvent

Brief History of NEC1971NY-DC GoalNY-DC ActualNY-BOS Goal1965NY-BOS Actual4:0019693:002:452:001976Deadline198119821986199120102hrs3hrs4hrs5hrsEvent

Brief History of NEC1971NY-DC GoalNY-DC ActualNY-BOS Goal1965NY-BOS Actual4:0019693:002:452:0019763:402:40Deadline19811982

19811986199120102hrs3hrs4hrs5hrsEvent

Brief History of NEC1971NY-DC GoalNY-DC ActualNY-BOS Goal1965NY-BOS Actual4:0019693:002:452:0019763:402:40Deadline19813:402:40

19851982

19811986199120102hrs3hrs4hrs5hrsEvent

Brief History of NEC1971NY-DC GoalNY-DC ActualNY-BOS Goal1965NY-BOS Actual4:0019693:002:452:0019763:402:40Deadline19813:402:40

198519823:004:24

19811986199120102hrs3hrs4hrs5hrsEvent

Brief History of NEC1971NY-DC GoalNY-DC ActualNY-BOS Goal1965NY-BOS Actual4:0019693:002:452:0019763:402:40Deadline19813:402:40

198519823:004:24

198119862:363:57199120102hrs3hrs4hrs5hrsEvent

Brief History of NEC1971NY-DC GoalNY-DC ActualNY-BOS Goal1965NY-BOS Actual4:0019693:002:452:0019763:402:40Deadline19813:402:40

198519823:004:24

198119862:363:5719913:004:3020102hrs3hrs4hrs5hrsEvent

Brief History of NEC1971NY-DC GoalNY-DC ActualNY-BOS Goal1965NY-BOS Actual4:0019693:002:452:0019763:402:40Deadline19813:402:40

198519823:004:24

198119862:363:5719913:004:3020103:003:302:502:152hrs3hrs4hrs5hrsEvent

Federal Investment in NECNECIP*NHRIP***NECIP Northeast Corridor Improvement Program**NHRIP Northeast Corridor High Speed Rail Improvement Program

Chart3

136.16136.16

506.68506.68

949.44949.44

988.47988.47

706.86706.86

643.825643.825

275.456275.456

215.9928215.9928

197.1848197.1848

69.304569.3045

30.10230.102

45.470845.4708

29.864129.8641

19.164619.1646

31.677631.6776

71.612150763568.6934

225.964580519762.045

146.953625411443.6824

142.409089349865.3345

168.8451447984133.791

171.68744904685.6125

257.992290041293.1177

563.3264160.3992

514.88346167.94435

343.59696136.731

255.81189217.39287

135.5144333715120.4749

153.5879664851153.9912

230.65595707230.7

184.6999184.6999

Boston - New Haven Electrification

Basic Investment

Fiscal Year

Millions of 2004 dollars

Slide5_Growth

Growth Trends Since 1975

By Commuter Agency

`

Train MovementsTrain Miles (000)

1975200519752005

Amtrak9741,071137,400182,300

% of Total14%9%69%58%

Commuter6,22910,79160,688132,794

% of Total86%91%31%42%

Total7,20311,862198,088315,094

19752005

Amtrak137,400182,300

Commuter60,688132,794

Slide5_Growth

00

00

Amtrak

Commuter

Slide6_InfraHist

Graph>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Current Rail Times and SpeedFrom New York Penn Station

Ownership of NEC

Route MilesAmtrak (363 of 457 main line, Springfield, Harrisburg, portion of Albany line)548Massachusetts (main line)37Connecticut (main line)47MTA (main line, 10; Hudson [Albany] line, 63)73CSX (Albany line, 68; Washington-Richmond, 108)176

Commuter Operations on NEC Amtrak predicts ridership on the NEC to double by 2030 for 13M to 26M

Over that same time period total volume on the corridor is expected to increase from 250M to 400M

Train Movements by Segment

Capacity Constraints on the NECSource: The Northeast Corridor Infrastructure Master Plan, October 2009

Capacity Constraints on the NECSource: The Northeast Corridor Infrastructure Master Plan, October 2009

What Needs to be Done - SOGRState of Good Repair Backlog ~ $8BMore than 200 bridges most dating to the turn of the last century

Baltimores B&P Tunnels dating to post-Civil War period

Many interlockings (junctions and crossovers) which have not undergone a major renewal in decades and are now functionally obsolete

Electric traction systems straining to cope with increased traffic levels while relying on 1930s-era components

What Needs to be Done -GrowthSource: The Northeast Corridor Infrastructure Master Plan, October 2009

What Needs to be Done - GrowthNEC Infrastructure Capital Needs, 2010-2030 ($ Millions)Source: The Northeast Corridor Infrastructure Master Plan, October 2009Cost Category Total (M$s)

Growth 32,319SGR Backlog 7,944 Amtrak owned 4,744 Connecticut owned 3,200Subtotal 40,263

Normalized Replacement Amtrak owned 7,211 Connecticut owned 1,000 New York owned 924 CSXT owned N/ASubtotal 9,135

Total $49,398

Trip Times with ImprovementsFrom New York Penn Station

CityMilesCurrentTimeAvg Speed (MPH)Time w/ ImprovementsAvg Speed (MPH)Baltimore1852:10861:50101Boston2313:30673:0077Philadelphia911:10810:54100Providence1882:50662:3075Washington2252.50812:15100Richmond3346:00564:1576

www.America2050.orgwww.rpa.org

With the exception of Washington, all of the economies in the Northeast have followed a similar pattern and have underperformed the national trends over the last two decades. Building capacity and bringing this cities functionally closer together is critical to reverse this trend. The High Speed Ground Transportation Act of 1965 (HSGTA). This act Authorized $90 million ($608m 2008) for high speed demonstration projects, of which $52 million was allocated for the NEC. This investment predates the creation of Amtrak by 5 years and provided public money to upgrade what was then still privately own infrastructure, owned and operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad.As a result of this investment the first Metroliner went into service January 1969 and reduced trip times by a full hour to about three hours. The Metroliner was operated by what was then PennCentral after a merger between Pennsylvania Railroad New York Central. Ridership grew markedly, to over 700,000, an increase of about 200,000 passengers from 1968 pre-Metroliner ridership and doubling to 1.2 million by 1974. Although initially successful, lack of maintenance hampered it operations and by 1976, on time performance was only 25 percent.In 1971, the Secretary of Transportation Released Recommendations for Northeast Corridor Transportation which called for HSR service of 2hrs NY-DC and 2:45 NY-BOS. This was also the year that Amtrak assumed responsibility for passenger service on the corridor, but did not yet own the right of way. The late 1960s and early 1970s was a tumultuous time for rail in this country as the freight companies were shedding their passenger service and many including the Penn Central went bankrupt, which was the largest corporate bankruptcy in American History to that point. This had serious implications for the disinvestment in the physical infrastructure of these companies. By the time much of the corridor was conveyed to Amtrak in 1976, it was in a state of disrepair that we still have not recovered from.The Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform (4R) Act nationalized the Penn Central Railroad and conveyed ownership of the corridor to Amtrak. It also authorized the Northeast Corridor Improvement Project (NECIP) with $1.6B (~$6B 2008) called for 2:40 NY-DC and 3:40 NY-BOS by 1981 and a plan to get to 3:00 NY-BOS and 2:30 NY-DC within two years.In 1981, the Passenger Railroad Rebuilding Act was passed with two relevant provisions. The first is that managerial responsibility for the NECIP was to be transferred from the FRA to Amtrak by 1985. Also, a new deadline for 3:40 NY-BOS and 2:40 NY-DC, September 1985In 1982 these trip time mandates were dropped because: 1) electrification of corridor between NH-BOS more expensive than anticipated and 2) President Regan reduced funding for the project By 1986 much of the work of the NECIP was complete. One large piece not completed was the upgrade of the catenary system on the south end and the installation of a new catenary system on the north end. But trip time goals for the south end were met. In 1986 NY-DC was 2:36 down from 2:59 in 1981. North end reduced from 4:24 in 1982 to 3:57 but were short of the 3:40 goal.In 1991 Congress provided funding of $100M to electrify 157 miles of the NEC between New Haven and Boston under the Northeast High-Speed Rail Improvement Project. The project eliminated the need for a change of locomotives from electric to diesel, or vice versa, at New Haven, and reduced trip times on the north end of the corridor by about an hour.Today, the first comprehensive planning for the corridor has occurred in more than a decade. The Northeast Corridor Master Plan is the culmination of more than two years of coordination between Amtrak, the freight operators, the eight commuter rail operators and the Northeastern States.This graph shows the federal investment levels in the corridor over a three decade period. The major investments in the corridor are evident in the late 70s and early 80s with the NECIP in which the Metroliner was able to achieve its trip time goals on the south end by 1986, and again in the 90s with the electrification of the northern end of the corridor.Pictures from bottom left to upper right B&P Tunnels in Baltimore, Bridge over the Chesapeake, S-Curves south of 30th St Station in Philadelphia, moveable bridge in on CT shore north of New Haven, 150MPH territory near RI/MA border