Save Our Trains Michigan
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GOP lawmaker in fight for Amtrak bucks
BATTLE CREEK, Mich. -- Amtrak is a valuable mode of transportation and the government needs to fund it, said U.S. Rep. Joe Schwarz (R-Mich.), according to the Battle Creek Enquirer.
Schwarz met with about 14 people Tuesday at the Amtrak terminal downtown. The 45-minute meeting was scheduled by members of the local chapter of the National Conference of Firemen and Oilers, the union that represents Amtrak employees.
Schwarz said he and other members of Congress from states where Amtrak provides service are working to ensure federal funding for the passenger rail service in both the short-term and the long-term. They are willing to fight the Bush administration, which doesn't consider passenger railways a high priority, he said.
"It is a legitimate function of government," he said, referring to subsidizing passenger rail service. "We need a long-term plan. That's what we are going to try to do."
Amtrak, created by Congress in 1971, relies on federal and state operating subsidies. President Bush included no such aid in his budget for the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1. The U.S. House of Representatives is considering restoring aid to Amtrak.
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BATTLE CREEK, Mich. -- Amtrak is a valuable mode of transportation and the government needs to fund it, said U.S. Rep. Joe Schwarz (R-Mich.), according to the Battle Creek Enquirer.
Schwarz met with about 14 people Tuesday at the Amtrak terminal downtown. The 45-minute meeting was scheduled by members of the local chapter of the National Conference of Firemen and Oilers, the union that represents Amtrak employees.
Schwarz said he and other members of Congress from states where Amtrak provides service are working to ensure federal funding for the passenger rail service in both the short-term and the long-term. They are willing to fight the Bush administration, which doesn't consider passenger railways a high priority, he said.
"It is a legitimate function of government," he said, referring to subsidizing passenger rail service. "We need a long-term plan. That's what we are going to try to do."
Amtrak, created by Congress in 1971, relies on federal and state operating subsidies. President Bush included no such aid in his budget for the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1. The U.S. House of Representatives is considering restoring aid to Amtrak.
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