Transit Briefs: Govt. of Canada/Govt. of Quebec, Amtrak/NJ Transit, TransLink, MTA (Maryland)

(TransLink)

The governments of Canada and Quebec invest C$163.5 million to plan a structuring public transit project in Gatineau. Also, Amtrak and NJ Transit execute a joint plan to “accelerate investigations of disruptions and improve reliability" between New York and New Jersey; TransLink releases a corporate cost-cutting plan to address its funding gap; and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore’s administration moves forward with plans for a new light rail project in Baltimore.

Govt. of Canada/Govt. of Quebec

Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Sean Fraser; Leader of the Government in the House of the Commons and Member of Parliament for Gatineau Steven MacKinnon; Deputy Premier and Minister of Transport and Sustainable Mobility Geneviève Guilbault; and Minister of Culture and Communications Mathieu Lacombe on June 27 announced a joint investment of C$163.5 million for the planning phase of the structuring electric public transit project between the west of Gatineau and downtown Ottawa, Infrastructure Canada reported.

For the occasion, they were accompanied by the MP for Pontiac, Sophie Chatel, the MNA for Hull, Suzanne Tremblay, the MNA for Gatineau, Robert Bussière, the MNA for Chapleau, Mathieu Lévesque, the Mayor of Gatineau, Maude Marquis-Bissonnette, and the Vice-President of the Société de transport de l’Outaouais, Edmond Leclerc.

The C$98.1 million granted by the Government of Quebec and the C$65.4 million granted by the Government of Canada will be used to further studies on the Quebec portion of the project, which is not specifically defined as, but what appears to be, light rail. These include the environmental impact assessment, the preliminary design, as well as planning activities related to the engineering of the preparatory work. Their conclusions will be used to determine, among other things, the number and location of stations and the choice of rolling stock, as well as to specify the timetable and potential cost for construction of the project.

This structuring project, the governments say, “would meet the present and future mobility needs of residents of the cities of Gatineau and Ottawa by offering a reliable, high-performance public transit service that promotes connectivity to employment, commercial and university hubs.”

“This joint investment finances the essential studies for a structuring transportation project in Gatineau, aimed at meeting the present and future mobility needs of Gatineau and Ottawa residents with a reliable, high-performance public transit service,” said Fraser. “By improving access to jobs, businesses and post-secondary educational institutions, it will also boost the attractiveness of surrounding neighborhoods, encouraging the creation and densification of housing.”

“Our government continues to invest in structuring projects to support sustainable mobility throughout Quebec,” said Guilbault. “Thanks to this investment, our teams will be able to continue their work to deliver the best project to meet the needs of the population. The eventual implementation of an electric public transit system in the region will enhance sustainable mobility and help reduce greenhouse gas emissions.”

Amtrak/NJ Transit

Amtrak and NJ Transit recently announced that the two agencies have been “accelerating examination, inspection, maintenance, and improvement activities to a variety of infrastructure and fleet systems following a recent spike in Northeast Corridor (NEC) disruptions in New Jersey and New York Penn Station.”

This, the agencies say, will be a “holistic effort” focused on both Amtrak infrastructure—including the electric traction system that powers trains, the catenary (the system of overhead power wires that are part of the electric traction system), signals, and switches—and NJ Transit equipment, including the pantograph system that connects to the catenary and draws power for the train.

The execution of the joint action plan follows several major service disruptions in recent months, together with a variety of smaller incidents that have reduced reliability on this key travel corridor. The two companies are working together to investigate the causes of each of these events and to improve service for riders.

Immediate actions as part of the joint plan include:

• Additional extensive and frequent catenary and track inspections of the approximately 170 track miles between Trenton and New York City to identify any catenary issues that could cause pantograph damage.
• NJ Transit with Amtrak assistance is undertaking visual inspections of all pantographs at key stations and NJ Transit has installed high-resolution cameras to inspect pantographs.
• Externally supported reviews with industry experts to assist root cause analysis and development of solutions.
• Expansion of the helicopter catenary inspection and repair program, which involves taking high-resolution photos of the system, each catenary structure, and their components. The photos are inspected offline to identify priority items for repair.
• A joint review of Amtrak and NJ Transit delays and items impacting reliability, which will result in a prioritized set of investments to address sources of chronic delays.
• Additional longer-term actions to address state of good repair of Amtrak infrastructure, including added resources to expedite testing of transformers in substations; pursuing additional grants to replace catenary, substations and transmission, and signal lines, as well as support capital renewal; and evaluating methods to expand overnight work windows with service adjustments to accelerate renewal and repairs.

Amtrak and NJ Transit say they will issue regular reports that will include details of their efforts and progress to date, as well as information regarding root causes as they are identified.

Further research and development will continue as Amtrak and NJ Transit evaluate other methods to identify conditions and make repairs before service disruptions occur. Once the root causes are identified, Amtrak and NJ Transit say they will “identify or seek additional resources, if necessary, to address issues that are uncovered, while continuing to advance major projects,” such as Portal North Bridge and the Hudson Tunnel Project, which will replace the NEC’s old and fragile systems entirely with modern and reliable infrastructure for key sections of the NEC in New Jersey and New York.

“We understand the impact the recent events had on both Amtrak and NJ Transit customers and their families, and we share their frustration,” Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner. “It’s vital we work with NJ Transit to identify the root cause of these disruptions and return to on-time service and the quality experience customers expect.”

“NJ Transit recognizes how disruptive these recent incidents have been to the quality of life of every rail customer who depends on the Northeast Corridor, and we are as frustrated as they are,” NJ Transit President & CEO Kevin S. Corbett. “NJ Transit will continue to work jointly with Amtrak to identify the root causes of these incidents as quickly as possible to restore reliability for all our customers.”

TransLink

TransLink on June 27 announced that it is unveiling a series of efficiency measures, totaling approximately C$90 million per year, including corporate cost-cutting and revenue generation initiatives aimed at “urgently addressing its growing funding gap.”

The agency also released the results of an independent Efficiency Review conducted by Ernst & Young (EY), which found “limited opportunities to cut costs without reducing transit service.”

TransLink’s cost-cutting measures include corporate cost reductions and reduced staffing. It does not include any cuts to transit services for customers and is instead structured to safeguard transit service for as long as possible. The plan also identifies additional revenues and optimization of debt management.

While the financial benefits are “significant,” TransLink says they will only partially address an impending average annual funding gap of more than C$600 million that begins in 2026 after provincial relief funding runs out.

“We have worked closely with the Mayors’ Council and TransLink’s Board to take decisive action to examine our costs amidst this financial challenge. As a result, we’ve made some tough, but necessary decisions,” says TransLink CEO Kevin Quinn. “Many of the corporate programs and strategic initiatives we are scaling back played an important role in bringing riders back to our system, but now we must do whatever we can to reduce our long-term funding gap. The urgency of solving this crisis cannot be understated as we will be forced to look at service reductions at the end of 2025, should a solution not be found for our broken funding model.”

The independent Efficiency Review (download below) found that TransLink “has a culture focused on responsibility to taxpayers and underscored that there are limited opportunities to cut costs without cutting service given that 85% of costs are directly tied to frontline transit service.” TransLink says it accepts all opportunities from the review that don’t reduce transit services.

In identifying C$90 million in financial benefits, TransLink says it “goes beyond the review’s recommendations, focusing on operational-efficiency improvements, cost-management initiatives, revenue-enhancement strategies, and corporate program reductions.” Some key initiatives include:

• Eliminating 35 unfilled corporate roles and deferring other positions.
• Reducing third-party contractors by bringing more work in-house.
• Reducing research grants and projects on mobility innovations.
• Reducing leadership training courses.
• Reducing ridership development and community initiatives.
• Increasing fare evasion enforcement on the transit system.
• Optimizing debt management strategy.
• Reducing IT software and hardware expenses.

These initiatives will start taking place right away to “mitigate financial challenges brought on by TransLink’s funding model.” There are several issues with TransLink’s current funding model, including:

Decline in revenue from fuel taxes

• The regional shift toward electric and hybrid vehicles is causing a decline in fuel tax revenue.
• In 2023 alone, TransLink collected $34 million less revenue from the fuel tax than in 2022, with the losses projected to grow exponentially over the next decade. Fare increases below inflation Increasing costs and expansion.

Fare increases below inflation

• Due to the pandemic, the 2020 fare increase was cancelled and held at levels below inflation in 2021-2024.
• With no fare increase in 2020 and 2.3% increases in all subsequent years, TransLink’s costs have risen faster than fare prices have increased.

Increasing costs and expansion

• Costs of construction, labor, fuel, maintenance, and new vehicles have been increasing at unprecedented rates.
• Additional operating costs for expanding bus service and for new expansion projects like the Broadway Subway Project and Surrey–Langley SkyTrain which will require significant funding to operate once complete.

TransLink says is currently examining what reductions to service could look like in the future if an alternate funding model is not established. This comes at a time when Metro Vancouver’s population “continues to see unprecedented growth and worsening overcrowding throughout the region,” according to the agency.

“If there is one thing we can all agree on—it’s that no one wants to see less transit in Metro Vancouver,” says Mayors’ Council Chair Brad West. “This Mayors’ Council has been fighting for a solution that would allow for transit expansion, not reductions, for residents in our communities, but time is running out. Everyone needs to be part of that solution, and I’m pleased that TransLink has looked inward to find considerable savings and efficiencies that helps to close the funding gap.”

MTA

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore’s administration is moving forward with plans for a new light rail project in Baltimore, the governor wrote on social media on June 27, according to an Associated Press (AP) report.

Last year, according to the report, Moore said his administration was “reviving an east-west transit project that was nixed by his predecessor, former Gov. Larry Hogan.” However, AP reports that Moore was not specific last year about how the project would take shape, whether as a light rail, rapid bus system or a combination of mass transit options.

In an X (formerly Twitter) post, the governor wrote that it would be light rail.

“We listened to communities, stakeholders, and leaders across the state—they were clear, this is what they wanted,” Moore wrote. “We are proud to announce the Red Line will bring light rail to Baltimore!”

The Democratic governor has a news conference scheduled for June 28 in Baltimore to talk more about the Red Line, which would be an addition to the Maryland Transit Administration’s (MTA) existing Light RailLink system.

Earlier this month, research at Johns Hopkins University concluded that the Red Line “would have a positive impact on connecting people to jobs,” according to the AP report.

Hogan “angered” Baltimore officials in June 2015 during his first year in office when he announced he wasn’t moving forward with what was then estimated to be a $2.64 billion plan. While Hogan moved ahead with the Purple Line light rail plan in Montgomery and Prince George’s counties, he criticized the planning for the Red Line, calling it a “wasteful boondoggle,” according to the report.