Amtrak to continue service in Missouri

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Encouraged by the prospect of getting more money, Amtrak said Thursday that it has decided to continue its twice daily passenger train service between St. Louis and Kansas City.

Amtrak had threatened to eliminate one of the two trains on Saturday if the state did not come up with an additional $1.2 million to subsidize the service from March through June.

The legislature has not given final approval to the money.

But the House has approved an additional $800,000. That legislation is now pending in the Senate.

"We are encouraged by that, so we decided to keep operating the trains in the hopes that we can work something out for the continuation of service," said Amtrak spokeswoman Kathleen Cantillon.

House budget leaders assumed the remaining $400,000 sought by Amtrak could be covered through service cuts, such as a $5 boarding surcharge and the elimination of staff at the Jefferson City and Kirkwood depots.

The staffing cuts will take effect April 1 and save about $80,000 over the final three months of the fiscal year that ends June 30, said Brian Weiler, director of multimodal operations for the Missouri Department of Transportation.

The $5 surcharge, still being negotiated with Amtrak, would run from April through September and would be charged each time a person boards a train at any stop between St. Louis and Kansas City, Weiler said.

"Amtrak has agreed in principal to that concept," although it may be a first-of-its kind experiment nationally, Weiler said.

Cantillon said Amtrak was still in discussions with state officials about service cuts that could reduce the state's costs. She left open the possibility that Amtrak still could be forced to halt one of the two trains at some later date.

"Whether we're able to continue operating through the end of the fiscal year will depend on how much money is approved and how (lawmakers) decide to spend the money," Cantillon said.

Budget reduction

When preparing the current state budget, lawmakers decided last year to appropriate $5 million for Amtrak service, instead of the $6.2 million requested for a full year's worth of twice daily train service. That funding difference is what led to the recent uncertainty about Amtrak service.

For the next year's budget, Amtrak has requested $6.4 million to operate the trains at their current level of service.

The permanent staffing cuts would shave $320,000 off that, Weiler said. The $5 boarding surcharge also could be continued, he said.

Under the current schedule, Amtrak trains leave both St. Louis and Kansas City around 7:30 a.m. and 3 p.m., stopping at eight cities in between as they cross paths.

If service had been cut, the only options would have been an eastbound 7:30 a.m. train from Kansas City and a westbound 3:30 p.m. train from St. Louis.

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Supplemental spending bill is HB15.

On the Net

Amtrak: www.amtrak.com

Missouri Legislature: www.moga.state.mo.us