A look at a hopeful Justice Department action, after-the-jump ...
But first: Top Comments appears nightly, as a round-up of the best comments on Daily Kos. Surely ... you come across comments daily that are perceptive, apropos and .. well, perhaps even humorous. But they are more meaningful if they're well-known ... which is where you come in (especially in diaries/stories receiving little attention).------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Send your nominations to TopComments at gmail dot com by 9:30 PM Eastern Time nightly, or by our KosMail message board. Please indicate (a) why you liked the comment, and (b) your Dkos user name (to properly credit you) as well as a link to the comment itself.
If you are a rider of Amtrak services outside the Boston-Washington Northeast Corridor (and selected small routes) you may/may not be aware that 70% of its routes run on rails owned by freight railroads. And service on these routes can be spotty, due to lax enforcement of passenger rail priority … that may(!) change.
Until 1971, passenger rail existed on all Class 1 railroads (consolidation since has notably reduced their numbers) due to the concept of the common carrier:
It holds that a transportation provider must accept all customers (passengers or freight shippers) who are willing and able to pay the established fares, rates or tariffs. Nearly all railroads, along with airlines, marine ferry, cruise and shipping lines, trucking and intercity bus companies, are chartered as common carriers. Until Amtrak’s 1971 formation, federal regulators held the common carrier obligation to include the provision of a reasonable level of passenger service.
After the build-out of the Interstate highway system and the post-war boom, railroad companies lobbied Congress to relieve them of their passenger rail responsibilities (as many were losing money on them). Amtrak was founded as a result (and began service on May 1st, 1971), so railroad firms could focus solely on freight. And Amtrak had to pay freight railroads for the use of their tracks.
In exchange for this relief: legislation was passed in 1973, stating that they ...
Had to give passenger trains preference unless they could win an exemption by proving that preference would “materially lessen the quality of transportation provided to freight shippers.”
No freight railroad has ever sought such an exemption… because it is easier to simply ignore the law, due to a lack of enforcement. There was a 2008 law that empowered the Surface Transportation Board to intercede, but alas …
Regarding the New Orleans-Los Angeles Sunset Limited, Amtrak requested an investigation by the Surface Transportation Board into the train’s on-time performance in December 2022, a first-of-its-kind complaint under a provision of the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2008. But that complaint is moving at an extremely slow pace, at least in part because the STB is essentially inventing its procedures for dealing with such matters. As of July 24, there have been some 119 filings and decisions in the Sunset case, and the railroads involved have received a number of deadline extensions in the board’s fact-finding process.
The last time the Justice Department (which is truly the vehicle for national law enforcement) intervened was … during the Carter administration back in 1979. It sued Southern Pacific for favoring freights (over Amtrak’s Sunset Limited) in a 362-mile stretch between New Orleans and Houston. While that case went to trial, a consent order issued (after the suit was filed) led to enough improvement in performance that the case was dismissed without a final ruling by the judge.
Forty-five years later (just two weeks ago) the Justice Department filed suit against one of these major railroads (Norfolk Southern) for its dispatching that led the New York—New Orleans Crescent train (which I rode back in 1981) to have only a 57% on-time record. There is all sorts of speculation on why the choice of Norfolk Southern (as all 15 of Amtrak’s long-distance trains that operate on the Class I railroads failed to meet federal on-time performance standards last year). I suspect this is a test case that — if successful — could lead to pressure on all Class 1 railroads to meet their obligations. Here’s hoping.
“Americans should not experience travel delays because rail carriers break the law. Our action today alleges that Norfolk Southern violates federal law by failing to give the legally required preference to Amtrak passenger trains over freight trains,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “The Justice Department will continue to protect travelers by ensuring that rail carriers fulfill their legal obligations.”
“For half a century, federal law has required freight rail companies to give Amtrak passenger rail service preference on their tracks — yet compliance with this important law has been uneven at best,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “We will continue to engage the railroad industry and work with Amtrak to ensure that freight railroads comply with their legal obligations and that Amtrak customers are not subjected to unacceptable, unnecessary, and unlawful delays.”
Jim Matthews is president of the Rail Passengers Association:
“By law, Amtrak has the right to preferential dispatching for its trains, and has had this right since 1973. Unfortunately, Amtrak is entirely dependent on the DOJ for enforcement action of this right, which has only happened once before today, way back in 1979. That means tens of millions of American passengers have been waiting for decades for relief from these host railroad-caused delays. With that history in mind, Rail Passengers is extremely appreciative of the leadership shown by the Biden Administration, the DOJ, and the U.S. Dept. of Transportation for taking action to protect the legal rights of passengers to quality, on-time service.
“Dispatching Amtrak trains so that they are late more than 80 percent of the time—month after month, year after year—cannot be explained by bad weather, or supply chain disruptions, or any other operational vagaries. This is especially true now that the trains’ schedules have been certified by both the host railroad and by Amtrak. We encourage the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to move forward with all due haste.”
Let’s close with … someone we lost over twenty years ago.
Now, on to Top Comments:
From tamar (alas, a few days old: just noticed today):
In the diary by ronbiss406 about how the departure of Joe Biden will end up much better than for 45— Grumpynerd wrote an excellent comment that describes trump perfectly: how he thinks, how he responds and controls others. It's educational!
From inkstainedwretch:
Captain Frogbert's reply to Don Dimitru on paradox's article delivers a Chef's Kiss on the arrogance and condescension of American 'journamalists', particularly that fantastical, fabulous, frabjously rude, last paragraph.
From userexists:
In that same diary about US journalism — I would like to submit ynohtnA’s comment, succinctly summing up why and how the US media has forfeited its right to demand access to our Democratic nominee.
From troffelmasse :
In the diary by wildstyle2— from paintitblue, who made the absolute best comeback to the horrifying statement by WaPo reporter Isaac Arnsdorf that journalists only report on behavior that they can change
From belinda ridgewood:
Two nominations today! First, in Chitown Kev'sAPR this morning, David Michigan brought an MSM critique and an action item: we can sign an open letter from the Media and Democracy Project with a list of MUCH-needed changes to the way the media cover elections!
Then, in a diary by MorrellWI1983about a new National Monument that President Biden is creating, Leslie in KY had a fascinating comment about her family member's connection with the horrific event being commemorated.
And from Ed Tracey, your faithful correspondent this evening ........
In the diary by Zappa144 about the grifting that former Sen. Ben Sasse did in less than two years as the president of the University of Florida — while many comments dealt with Desantis, higher education (in general), the school’s sports programs (and even alligators), MTPika placed the focus on the student newspaper reporter (Garrett Shanley) and his comprehensive research … ending with a good one-liner.
And lastly: yesterday's Top Mojo - mega-mojo to the intrepid mik ...... who rescued this feature from oblivion:
16) Slava Ukraini! by Tax Haven +13019) Pakalolo contacted me. He's OK. … by eeff +12521) This was really good new. Go Wisconsin! by Madisonian +12423) Georgia by Denise Oliver Velez +12326) Dump by Denise Oliver Velez +12026) Tic tac paddywhackjob. by AlbertRules +120