Foxx’s proclamation flies in the face of an Association of American Railroads-led push to extend the deadline, which the railroads— including passenger rail agencies such as the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority, operator of Metro-North and the Long Island Railroad—say is unrealistic. That movement is gaining acceptance in Congress, with a growing number of legislators on both the House and Senate side—both in Republican control—saying publicly that they support the extension.
PTC would have prevented the fatal December 2013 Metro-North derailment at Spuyten Duyvil in the Bronx, according to the National Transportation Safety Board. Efforts are now under way on Metro-North and the LIRR to install PTC, but an extension is still needed, officials say.
“Secretary Foxx can say all he wants about pressuring the industry to get PTC done by the end of the year, but his pronouncements are obviously not based on reality,” said one industry observer. “Does he realize that Congress imposed the PTC mandate back in 2008, and that Congress—and only Congress—can decide whether an extension is granted? Does he realize that the industry appears to have the backing of key legislators for extending the deadline?”
At Wednesday’s hearing, Rep. Jeff Denham (R-Calif.) noted that the Obama Administration has proposed spending $3 billion over six years to help regional/commuter railroads install PTC. He questioned if that signaled the Administration’s willingness to grant an extension of the deadline.
The Administration’s proposed Fiscal Year 2016 budget proposes spending $825 million through 2018 on PTC. Additional funding would be available in legislation to reauthorize Amtrak that the House T&I Committee approved Feb. 12, and that is expected to go to the House floor for a vote. A provision in the bill authored by Rep. Sean Maloney (D-N.Y.) would allow regional/commuter railroads to apply for Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing (RRIF) loans to install PTC.