Funding cuts for passenger rail, transit are the wrong way to go

Federal funding for passenger rail is under threat.

This is true every year, and passenger rail advocates have repeatedly fought successfully to retain funding. The day is saved each time because citizens concerned about this issue tell their Member of Congress how important passenger rail is to them. Politics in Washington is unusual these days, but it’s still true that it’s urgent that you tell your Member of Congress to invest more, not less, in passenger rail.

The federal budget proposal the White House sent to Congress calls for cuts to the Federal Railroad Administration totaling 81%, including cuts to Amtrak, programs that help states develop passenger rail, and capital funding for local transit systems. When you account for the expiration of funds from the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the reduction in funding will be even greater.

The proposal is for Fiscal Year 2027, the 12-month period that begins on Oct. 1, 2026. The current (2026) fiscal year budget ends on Sept. 30, 2026.

Of course, we oppose the reductions, which are dumb at a time when gas is $4.059 a gallon nationally. This is not a time to force travelers to drive more. This is a time to give travelers more options, not fewer

White House Budget Proposal for Fiscal Year 2027

Specifically, the budget proposal:

• Drops Amtrak funding 69%, from $6,827 billion to $2.1 billion. The budget proposes $650 million for the Northeast Corridor, down from the current $2.050 billion, and $1.45 billion for the Amtrak National Network, down from the current $4.777 billion.

• Eliminates the Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail Grant Program, which provides funding for capital projects that reduce the state of good repair backlog, improve performance, or expand or establish new intercity passenger rail service. The program was funded this year at $6.937 billion.

• Discontinues the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity grants program will be eliminated, in the amount of $145 million, because the program used “diversity equity and inclusion, ‘climate justice,’ and other illegal and inefficient selection criteria not in statute to harm motorists by, for example, reducing critical lane capacity.”

• The Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements Program is funded this year at $987 million – the Federal Railroad Administration published a Notice of Funding Opportunity this week – while the 2027 proposal is for $294 million.

• The Railroad Crossing Elimination Program, funded this year at $600 million, drops to zero.