Amtrak Has Competition in Indiana.
Three days a week, passengers traveling by train between Chicago and Indianapolis can take The Cardinal, an Amtrak long-distance train that runs on a southerly route overnight through Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, West Virginia and Virginia to Washington, D,.C.; then on up the East Coast to New York City.
For as long as I can remember, on the other four days, Amtrak has also operated the Hoosier State, an all-coach train making only the five-hour run between Chicago and Indianapolis.
But a few years ago, defying the obvious logic that our national passenger rail system should be supported by the national government, Congress decided that any subsidies for Amtrak trains with routes less than 750 miles would have to come from the states through which those trains passed. Among several trains affected was the Hoosier State.
With the ball suddenly in their court, the State of Indiana didn’t just pick up the tab for the Amtrak service. In effect, they put the Hoosier State out to bid. There was an embarrassing false start, but the second time around, the Indiana DOT awarded a contract to Iowa Pacific Holdings and that company is now operating the Hoosier State.
Amtrak is still very much involved, however. The locomotives and rail cars belong to Iowa Pacific and the car attendants and the dining car staff are Iowa Pacific employees. But Amtrak is still providing the operating crew—the engineers and conductors—and the Iowa Pacific equipment is serviced at Amtrak’s Beech Grove Maintenance Facility. You can also buy tickets for the Hoosier Sate directly from the Amtrak web site.
So how have things been going so far? Uh … well, it’s a mixed bag. Some good, some not so good.
The “good” is really good. The on-board service provided by Iowa Pacific includes a business class option that offers free drinks plus meals cooked on board and served on real china in an observation/dining car. (Breakfast shown in photo above.) Compared to Amtrak’s Café Car . . . well, there really is no comparison.
But there have been mechanical problems and more than a few. Iowa Pacific trains have been annulled and passengers expecting to enjoy the creature comforts noted above have found themselves on vastly disappointing five-hour bus rides instead. Furthermore, the relationship between Amtrak and Iowa Pacific has been spotty—ranging from tense to hostile.
There’s a lot riding on this train, so to speak. Can a private company operate regular passenger service, offer better on-board amenities than Amtrak, and still make a buck? And even if it can, will the State of Indiana, with a conservative governor and legislature, continue to subsidize the service? That’s a plateful right there but, trust me, there’s a lot more to come.
Until Congress clarifies its intentions in the PRIIA acts, particularly to determine who makes the decisions re proposed private rail operators-either on current Amtrak lines; either using Amtrak’s right of access or negotiating on its own for starting new services; or directly competing with Amtrak, this issue will never be resolved to anybody’s satisfaction, in respect to the inherent institutional biases. Should it be Amtrak, FRA, or DOT, or even state DOT compacts?
As part of this intellectual process, to what extent do we move in the direction of British Rail, and outsource train operators, catering, marketing; perhaps even a separate firm for infrastructure? The opportunity for a dramatic approach is rapidly upon us: the Class 1s are feeling the pinch from less oil fracking and abandonment of coal; Amtrak has all but given up on its ability to provide on-board services, First Class, food & beverage, marketing, etc.
Perhaps a separate infrastructure firm for NEC and leasing Class 1 right-of-way would have the economic incentive-and clout-to negotiate with Class 1s for access, faster speeds, introduce P3 contributions to improve infrastructure, real estate development, TOD, etc? As we witness Iowa Pacific cutting its teeth on a regularly scheduled train, perhaps we take it one step further and introduce Virgin Rail altogether? It’s not just about speed, but convenience of schedule frequency and on-board amenities/services. (Just look at the success of VIA Rail’s corridor services!)
However, a foremost caveat is to learn from Indiana’s experience–any potential private operator must be fully vetted-before given any mandate-to verify a real track record covering:
1-actual, hands-on operational experience of passenger rail service;
2-financial depth for start-up and working capital funds;
3-access to equipment;
4-a working relationship with Amtrak/Class 1s.
Learning from its initial error ignoring the above 4 points, Indiana turned to Iowa Pacific.
And that bacon in the photo looks delicious (and thicker than Amtrak’s thin excuse for breakfast bacon)! And the china and free drinks are great touches too. And it sounds like their on-board service crew might be shooting for 85% “A’s.”
I wish Iowa Pacific well. Oh – isn’t there a dome car somewhere in the consist?
I believe that the dining car IS a dome car.
Yes, it is an ex-Santa Fe Big Dome