Amtrak’s CEO says rail system will change slowly

Passenger trains could speed travelers from Richmond to Washington at 135 mph, Amtrak's president and CEO says.

But, said Joseph Boardman: "Don't expect it next week."

Boardman spoke yesterday to about 200 people at Randolph-Macon College in Ashland as part of a Greater Richmond Chamber meeting focused on transportation issues.

Fast, reliable transportation is a top concern for the Richmond area's business community, and high-speed rail service to Washington -- 98 miles away as the crow flies -- is high on its wish list.

"There are lots and lots of expectations," Boardman said. "Managing those expectations is the toughest thing I have to do."

But the issue is a key one for the region, said Greater Richmond Chamber President and CEO Kim Scheeler.

"The impact for business is knowing that you can get to D.C. in a certain time," he said. "That's critical."

When bad weather or highway incidents slow traffic on Interstate 95 between Richmond and the nation's capital, "you know it will be a four-hour journey to Washington," chamber Chairwoman Katherine Busser said.

Depending on which train a rider takes, Amtrak trips from Main Street Station in Richmond to Washington are scheduled to take about three hours, and from Staples Mill Station in Henrico County, trips run 2¼ to 2½ hours.

Faster rail service could cut that to two hours or a shade less.

Amtrak's Staples Mill Station was the national passenger rail service's busiest stop in Virginia, handling 275,479 passengers in 2008. Main Street Station saw 19,360 passengers in 2008, and the Ashland stop had 16,497 passengers.

Because of the number of affected interests -- passengers, taxpayers, Amtrak, private railroads, unions, states, localities and the federal government -- change in the American rail system will come only incrementally, Boardman said.

Even though the federal stimulus package has put $9.3 billion into the U.S. rail system, Boardman said, "I don't see that as a large amount." As New York state transportation commissioner, he managed a $5 billion capital budget.

"One way to go fast is not to go slow," Boardman said. "Many places on our system, we're down to 10 miles an hour, 20 miles an hour."

Fixing those choke points, he said, in some cases would cost only "a few million dollars."

It's not enough to go fast, Boardman said. Trains also have to operate reliably.

"Amen," a voice responded from the audience in Randolph-Macon's Blackwell Auditorium.

Contact Peter Bacqué at (804) 649-6813 or .