Amtrak pushing for speed controls

Amtrak is considering suspending service on tracks that don’t have sophisticated speed controls by a Dec. 31 deadline, the railroad’s top executive said Thursday, threatening to disrupt operations across the U.S. in a push to strengthen safety after a series of deadly wrecks.

President and CEO Richard Anderson told a House subcommittee that Amtrak is worried passengers are being put at risk by delays in installing Positive Train Control systems on tracks it uses but doesn’t own. Those tracks make up a majority of Amtrak’s network.

Railroads face a yearend deadline mandated by Congress for installing the GPS-based system, known as PTC, but some are asking regulators for an extension until 2020. That’s on top of a three-year delay granted in 2015. They’ve cited challenges including equipment problems and delays in testing to ensure it’s compatible with other railroads’ systems.

Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Oregon, has proposed to ban further extensions. DeFazio’s bill would offer more than $2.5 billion in grants to speed railroads’ progress. Industry groups estimate railroads will spend about $10 billion in total to install and implement the systems.

Amtrak already has PTC in place on about 700 miles of tracks it owns on the Northeast Corridor from Boston to Washington, D.C., and in Michigan. Elsewhere, the government-owned railroad operates on track owned by freight carriers and other entities.

Anderson said Amtrak is evaluating whether it will continue running trains on third-party tracks where the PTC deadline is extended. He said the railroad won’t operate on tracks whose owners haven’t made enough progress to warrant a delay and is unlikely to operate on stretches that regulators have excluded from PTC requirements.