Railroads

Your morning transportation speed-read:

Michigan Gov. Rick Synder (R) says he wants to improve transportation to attract young people.

A runway at Houston's William P. Hobby Airport is being renovated.

Railroad workers on Long Island have been charged with disability fraud.

A Swedish automobile company is in talks to buy Saab.

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said Friday that record ridership numbers that were recently released by Amtrak were helping the Obama administration's push for more high-speed railways in the country.

Amtrak announced last week that it had 30.2 million passengers in 2011 — more riders than in any of its previous 40 years of operation.

LaHood said Friday that success made the Obama administration's high-speed rail push much easier.

"One of the best advantages in our push for 21st-century American high-speed rail service has been the terrific passenger rail system already operated around the country by Amtrak," he wrote on a blog post on the Department of Transportation website. 

Your morning transportation speed-read:

The Federal Aviation Administration dedicated a new air traffic control tower at Memphis International Airport.

Amtrak is adding Internet Wi-Fi to its regional trains.

New York City has a new MTA chief.

FedEx's cargo facility at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport has gone green.

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood took Florida Gov. Rick Scott (R) to task again this week for turning down $2.4 billion in federal money for a high-speed railway in his state.

LaHood was in Florida this week to attend an intelligent transportation system conference in Orlando. While he was there, the Orlando Sentinel reported he reminded attendees of Scott's high-profile rejection of a Tampa-to-Orlando line the Obama administration had hoped would become a cornerstone of a nationwide network of railways.

"The Florida project was one of most innovative, creative, forward-thinking projects in America. Only the governor was against it," the paper reported LaHood said.

A conservative newspaper editorial board is refuting Democratic claims that ridership numbers released this week by Amtrak showed the national passenger rail service was in good shape.

Amtrak announced last week that it had carried 30.2 million passengers in 2011, more riders than it had in any of its previous 40 years of operation. Democrats said the ridership showed Amtrak service in its most profitable region, the Northeast, should not be privatized, as a Republican plan released earlier this year would do.

But in an editorial, The Wall Street Journal said Wednesday that there was more to the Amtrak numbers than meets the eye.

"Amtrak announced last week to great media fanfare that the national train service carried a record 30 million passengers last year," the paper wrote. "A banner year on its 40th anniversary of government ownership, right? Well, no. Here's what Amtrak didn't trumpet: It lost a near-record amount of money in fiscal 2011, with some $560 million from the feds required to cover its operating deficit."

Your morning transportation speed-read:

Transportation officials in Colorado have a plan to use police cars to set the pace of traffic on a major highway in the state.

Investors in a proposed California High Speed Rail might not get on board with the proposal until after it is built.

The Federal Aviation Administration halted flights in Missouri to assist a police search for a missing baby.

Police are investigating a shooting involving a security officer on Atlanta, Ga.'s MARTA transit system.

Record ridership numbers announced by Amtrak show why rail service should not be privatized, Democrats argued Thursday.

The agency announced it had carried 30.2 million passengers in 2011, more than any previous year in its 30 years of operation. Democrats said the ridership showed Amtrak should remain the national passenger rail service.

“Americans are returning to the rails in record numbers, yet Republicans are pulling out all of the stops in their rush to auction off Amtrak’s assets to the highest bidder on Wall Street,” Rep. Nick Rahall (D-W.Va.), the ranking Democrat on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, said in a statement. 

Ten House Republicans from California are proposing to pull back millions in unspent federal funds meant for California's high-speed rail project until a feasibility study is done on the effort to link San Francisco, Los Angeles and other major California cities by rail.

House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) is the lead sponsor of the bill, a sign that it has the strong potential to be considered by the House. McCarthy said the California High-Speed Rail Authority recently delayed its business plan, and that this, along with lingering questions about the viability of the project, means a delay is in order.

Your morning transportation speed-read:

Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) is calling for a "Bill of Rights" for Long Island Railroad riders.

A project officials say will improve rail traffic around Chicago is now under way.

A man has been charged for allegedly ramming his car into the Jackson Hole Airport in Wyoming.

The Raleigh-Durham airport has a new chief.

Your morning transportation speed-read:

A study says texting while driving is even more dangerous than previously thought.

The Department of Transportation has awarded $196 million to increase the speed of Amtrak trains between Chicago and Detroit.

A highway in North Carolina that was damaged by Hurricane Irene is on the verge of re-opening.

A former National Basketball Association player was arrested for trying to bring a gun through security at St. Louis's Lambert International Airport.