Three-state rail compact closer to realization

Journal Record, The (Oklahoma City), Jun 20, 2000 by Bill May

Oklahoma's efforts to lure expanded Amtrak service could move to fast-forward when a three-state rail compact is developed.

Although it's been in the talking stage for at least four years, the compact is coming closer than ever to fruition.

Oklahoma state Sen. Paul Muegge, D-Tonkawa, participated in an Arkansas City, Kan., meeting to discuss the compact last week. It's not known how successful he was, because efforts to reach Muegge over the weekend were unsuccessful. The meeting, though, was "just to tighten up some of the language in the bill," said state Sen. Dave Herbert, D-Midwest City. "We've already agreed to this, but the (Kansas) legislative committee working on it they do everything by committee up there wanted to have the language tightened up.

"What we want to do is after that language is approved by the Kansas Legislature, then we'll adopt a similar measure containing the identical language. Then we'll ask the Texas Legislature to adopt a bill also containing the identical language."

This would mean that the three states would work closely in bringing more north-south trains for connection with the national system. The two routes that Oklahoma is interested in are from Fort Worth to Newton, Kan., through Oklahoma City, and Kansas City to Fort Worth, through Tulsa and Oklahoma City. After expanding the service to Newton, the next step would be to develop a Denver to Fort Worth route, though Oklahoma City, Herbert said.

Fort Worth is rapidly becoming a southwest passenger hub for Amtrak. Kansas City and Newton long have been hubs. Tapping into routes going to these three hubs would give Oklahomans better and more convenient access to the national system, especially to Chicago and Los Angeles, Herbert said.

"I've been told that if we form a compact between the three states, we'll have the most powerful one in the nation," he said. "Once Congress recognizes us as a compact, we'll be eligible for more federal funds."

These funds would be used to upgrade rail infrastructure in the three states, primarily grade crossings.

"Both Kansas and Texas are interested in developing high-speed rail corridors, but they need our help to do it," Herbert said. "We need their help to be on the same system.

"What we're talking about are trains that travel 90 mph and faster, so we need signals and crossing guards that will handle the higher-speed trains. With what we have now, the trains will already be at a crossing before the signals activate."

The Oklahoma Legislature already has approved a compact with the two states, but the Kansas and Texas governing bodies have been on the slow side. That's because of the cumbersome committee system in Kansas and the fact that the Texas Legislature meets only every other year.

"Once we get the compacts approved with the identical language, then we can come back and make changes as they are needed," Herbert said.

Herbert is pushing more rail passenger service for Oklahoma for two reasons -- socioeconomic and tourism development. Studies have shown that train-riding tourists have more leisure time and more spendable income than other tourists, Herbert has said in the past.

Rail passenger service also offers an alternative mode of travel, primarily benefiting the senior citizens, Herbert said.

"When people get old, we tend to just house them," he said. "If they can no longer drive and are afraid to fly, they are trapped inside their houses. Adding rail service will allow them to get out and visit people in other states."

He also is pushing hard for rail passenger service because there's a demand for it, Herbert said.

Last week during the celebration of the first anniversary of the Heartland Flyer -- in which it was noted that the ridership exceeded expectations by more than 350 percent -- Herbert took the opportunity to say: "I told you so."

"This comes as absolutely no surprise to me," he said. "I knew that if given the opportunity, Oklahomans would ride the train."

Other politicians lined up solidly behind Herbert, echoing his statement that the train acts as a tourist draw.

A recent study showed that if the Heartland Flyer would be extended to Newton, more than 500 Oklahomans would ride the train each day. That also has given impetus to the political efforts to expand Amtrak service in Oklahoma.

It's not known how much it would cost to improve the Burlington Northern-Santa Fe Railroad line through Oklahoma -- the line that Amtrak uses for its passenger route -- to allow for high-speed trains. Improving the state-owned line between Oklahoma City and Tulsa, though, is expected to cost more than $1 million per mile.

With these costs holding back development of a fully integrated rail system, Herbert will try once again in the 2001 legislative session to pass a bill calling for a popular vote to raise gasoline taxes by one cent over 10 years to pay for these infrastructure costs. Similar measures have failed in both the last two sessions. Next year will be different, though, Herbert said, because it won't be an election year.