http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/amtrak/ en-us Mon, 21 Dec 2009 12:05:12 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2412121/posts We all make mistakes, so perhaps this is just one of those cases where the results lend themselves to ridicule. From Fox News: It may sound absurd. But President Obama signed a bill into law Wednesday that requires passengers who carry firearms aboard Amtrak be locked in boxes for their journey. It's a mistake in the law's wording. But for now, the clerical error is the law of the land. I'm sure there's no shortage of antis who would have no problem getting on board with that idea. Thing is: The bill text was correct when the House approved the... Gun Rights Examiner http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2412121/posts#comment Mon, 21 Dec 2009 12:05:12 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2406501/posts HARTFORD — - The state's congressional delegation is pressuring Gov. M. Jodi Rell to get financing back on schedule for the Hartford-to-Springfield high-speed train system. Sens. Joseph Lieberman and Christopher Dodd advised Rell late Friday to quickly push through funding for engineering and surveying. Unless that work is done soon, they said, Connecticut might lose its shot at $80 million in federal funding this winter — and perhaps hundreds of millions later. "Put simply, a failure to authorize state funding for this preliminary work will jeopardize the state's ability to receive federal funding for this critical project," said a letter... The Hartford Courant http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2406501/posts#comment Sun, 13 Dec 2009 10:52:44 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2404448/posts Gun-toting Amtrak passengers are one giant step closer to being allowed to travel with firearms in their checked luggage, as lawmakers included a measure to lift a railroad gun ban in a catch-all spending bill for fiscal 2010. The omnibus spending bill, which combines six annual appropriations bills for the fiscal year that began Oct. 1, is considered must-pass legislation, and that makes the new Amtrak gun rule as close to a sure bet as there is on Capitol Hill. Travelers with firearms have long faced disparate treatment on trains and airplanes. Airline passengers can transport firearms in checked baggage,... The Washington Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2404448/posts#comment Thu, 10 Dec 2009 12:17:06 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2394919/posts ABOARD AMTRAK AUTO TRAIN 52 TO WASHINGTON - All aboard on this train doesn’t mean just people. It means minivans, cars and motorcycles, too. To board you have to be packing some serious luggage: Every traveler must also be transporting a vehicle. Amtrak’s Auto Train, the only one like it in the nation, has only two stops: one near Orlando, Fla., and the other in Virginia near Washington, D.C. For more than 25 years, it has carried vacationers and their vehicles, and a new $10 million station expected to open in Florida in 2010 may mean even more passengers. ~~~SNIP~~~... Boston Herald http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2394919/posts#comment Thu, 26 Nov 2009 15:17:01 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2389750/posts Just how much clout does the gun lobby have on Capitol Hill? This week may prove to be a crucial test: A House-Senate conference committee is about to take up a massive transportation-funding bill that is pitting advocates of gun rights against security-minded members worried about the threat of terrorist attacks on Amtrak trains. Tucked into the measure is a controversial National Rifle Association-backed amendment that would cut off $1.5 billion in subsidies to Amtrak unless the federally backed national passenger-train company reverses its post-9/11 security policies and permits train passengers to travel with handguns and other firearms as part... Newsweek http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2389750/posts#comment Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:12:45 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2372858/posts A push in Congress for broader gun rights is threatening to derail Amtrak and stall a transportation spending bill. Gun-rights advocates in Congress are pressing appropriators to keep a provision that would let Amtrak passengers check in handguns with their baggage. The provision, which calls for withholding $1.5 billion in Amtrak funding if the policy isn't implemented before April, was inserted into the $68.8 billion Senate transportation and housing and urban development spending bill as an amendment. All 40 Republicans, 27 Democrats and one independent voted for the amendment, sponsored by Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.).Amtrak and its defenders in Congress... The Hill http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2372858/posts#comment Wed, 28 Oct 2009 15:04:39 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2371643/posts “Any honest reading of history suggests that the federal government has quite an impressive record of rescuing institutions considered too big to fail,” suggests an article in the March/April 2009 issue of Washington Monthly. The first two examples cited by author Phillip Longman are Lockheed and Chrysler, which both received emergency loans from the government in 1971 and 1980, respectively. Both companies paid back their loans, with interest, and the government made no attempt to take a controlling interest in the institutions. In one of the largest industrial bailouts in recent history, however, the federal government took over the failing... The Constitutional Alamo http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2371643/posts#comment Tue, 27 Oct 2009 03:35:42 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2369774/posts Amtrak is raising serious objections to a proposal that would allow passengers to stow unloaded guns in their checked baggage, saying the train operator cannot screen passengers' bags the same way airlines do. The Senate passed a measure last month that would allow passengers to declare and check a weapon on the trains, something airline passengers can do now, provided the weapon is unloaded and in a hard and locked case. But Amtrak and some House members are against the idea. The House did not include the provision in their version of the bill approved by the Senate. "That could... Foxnews http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2369774/posts#comment Sat, 24 Oct 2009 02:43:32 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2363373/posts WASHINGTON, D.C. – Montana’s Congressman, Denny Rehberg, has introduced legislation with colleagues to allow the transportation of legal firearms on Amtrak trains. The Amtrak Secure Transportation of Firearms Act of 2009 is the companion measure to legislation introduced in the Senate by Senator Wicker. "Amtrak is a great way for Montanans to get around the country, but folks shouldn’t have to forfeit their Second Amendment rights when they climb aboard," said Rehberg, a member of the House Appropriations Committee and a recipient of the Golden Spike Award. "Current restrictions prevent Montanans who wish to legally transport firearms from enjoying the... U.S. House of Representatives http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2363373/posts#comment Thu, 15 Oct 2009 21:17:43 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2350209/posts ·11250 Waples Mill Road ·   Fairfax, Virginia 22030    ·800-392-8683   Usual Suspects Attack Wicker Amendment   Friday, September 25, 2009   Last week, we reported on the Wicker amendment—a NRA-backed amendment to H.R. 3288 (the FY 2010 Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development appropriations bill) that would reform policies regarding the transportation of firearms on Amtrak trains.  The measure was adopted by the Senate on Wednesday, September 16, by a vote of 68-30, and would allow law-abiding Amtrak passengers the ability to securely transport firearms in their checked baggage while traveling by Amtrak train. Currently, passengers who choose to travel by passenger... NRA - ILA http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2350209/posts#comment Mon, 28 Sep 2009 20:04:49 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2345583/posts The jihadi threat to rail security By Michelle Malkin  •  September 22, 2009 10:15 AM The arrest of terror suspect Najibullah Zazi has re-focused Obama’s homeland security officials on the ongoing jihadi threat to rail security. Mass transit systems across the country are on renewed alert: A 24-year-old Afghan man at the center of an unfolding FBI investigation into a possible U.S. terrorism cell was ordered held without bond in Colorado Monday as authorities raced to learn more about an alleged plot using hydrogen peroxide explosives and who else might have been helping to carry it out.Meanwhile, authorities in Washington and elsewhere... michellemalkin.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2345583/posts#comment Tue, 22 Sep 2009 16:10:54 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2345281/posts With all the howling this week over at the New York Times Editorial Board about Senate passage of the Wicker Amendment, its refreshing to learn that the Board of Directors of the Virginia Rail Express voted yesterday to let train riders carry loaded guns. While the Wicker Amendment passed by the Senate this week requires AMTRAK to let train riders check their unloaded guns in cases onto trains as is done by the airlines, the VRE Board passed a resolution just two days later (September 18, 2009) to let riders carry loaded guns. . . . However, as is the... The Examiner.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2345281/posts#comment Tue, 22 Sep 2009 03:55:52 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2342181/posts The Senate voted on Wednesday to allow Amtrak passengers to carry unloaded and locked handguns in checked baggage, even though Amtrak officials had raised concerns that the proposal could present “numerous challenges.” The provision, which was introduced by Senator Roger Wicker, Republican, as an amendment to a housing and transportation spending bill, is the latest in a string of Senate votes aimed at expanding gun rights. It passed 68-30, with a group of 27 Democrats and one independent, mostly from states where gun rights are widely supported, joining all 40 Republicans in voting for the measure. Under the Wicker amendment,... NY Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2342181/posts#comment Thu, 17 Sep 2009 18:46:30 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2341855/posts WASHINGTON, Sept. 16 (UPI) -- A measure to put Amtrak passengers on the same footing as airline passengers, allowing guns in checked-through baggage, was passed by the U.S. Senate Wednesday. The legislation, part of the transportation and housing appropriations bill, was approved 68-30. It would deny federal subsidies to Amtrak if it doesn't change its rules. The House version does not include the provision. Domestic airlines allow licensed gun owners to transport their weapons in their checked-through baggage. One senator said the gun measure "is going to put a severe burden" on Amtrak, CNN reported. But the measure's sponsor, Sen.... Times of the Internet http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2341855/posts#comment Thu, 17 Sep 2009 12:11:36 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2335864/posts I’ve just been on Amtrak’s website to see how much it would cost for a single day, round trip adult ticket from Metro Park, NJ (MET) to Union Station (WAS) on September 12, 2009. When I do this, the total cost is $224.00. Note that this is for the 121 Train departing at 6:20 AM and the 182 Train leaving DC at 7:20 PM. When I enter the same itinerary for one week later, September 19, 2009 and select the same trains the total round trip cost is $98.00. The dramatic price difference confuses me and I can’t explain why... http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2335864/posts#comment Wed, 9 Sep 2009 23:10:38 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2326641/posts Here is shocking video from a camera on the front of an Amtrak train in Michigan that collided with a car carrying five teenagers on July 9. The car reportedly went around warning barriers and drove right into the path of the train. All five passengers were killed. The video shows the collision. You can see the car dart right into the path of the train, and then you can hear the train's brakes stopping the train. You cannot see the car stuck to the front of the train in the video, but at the 2:25 mark of the video,... Freedom's Lighthouse http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2326641/posts#comment Fri, 28 Aug 2009 15:37:27 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2309627/posts First it was I.G. Walpin who was investigating BO 's supporter on the misused of Americorp funds. Now it is I.G. Weiderhold for investigating Amtrak’s activities. The Inspector General Act, amended last year and CO-SPONSORED by Barack Obama to: require the President to notify Congress in writing within 30 days the reasons for removing an Inspector General from office. Did Obama knowingly break the law on this one or did TOTUS forget to tell him he couldn't do it. Center For Fiscal Accountability http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2309627/posts#comment Thu, 6 Aug 2009 14:55:45 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2292037/posts Link provided below. USA Today cannot be posted on FR. USA Today http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2292037/posts#comment Tue, 14 Jul 2009 05:26:04 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2292020/posts Amtrak has wasted little time using its $1.3 billion slice of the federal stimulus package, unveiling the first of 81 passenger cars to be restored with the help of economic recovery funds. Passenger car no. 25103, damaged a few years ago in a yard collision but now completely refurbished - complete with that "new car" interior smell - was shown off Monday at Amtrak's maintenance facility in Bear. More than 100 hard-hatted workers joined Amtrak president and CEO Joseph Boardman in celebrating completion of its restoration. The car, refitted at a cost of about $687,000, will rejoin the Amtrak fleet... Myway News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2292020/posts#comment Tue, 14 Jul 2009 04:39:45 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2290407/posts LAGUNA NIGUEL, Calif. (KABC) -- Southern California may be known for its sunny skies, but the city of Laguna Niguel's reputation for the past three decades has revolved around the moon. Actually thousands of moons. Each year a crush of people line up along the railroad tracks in the city and bare their backsides to every Amtrak train that passes by. But now the sun may be setting on this mooning tradition. "Hopefully it will be a much smaller event this year," said Mayor Robert Ming, Laguna Niguel. Mayor Ming says last year the crowd numbered 10,000, a problem when... http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2290407/posts#comment Sat, 11 Jul 2009 16:02:46 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2290077/posts (07-10) 17:00 PDT OAKLAND -- A man who lay down on the tracks in front of an Amtrak train in Oakland had limbs severed but was taken from the scene alive this afternoon, authorities said. Amtrak spokeswoman Vernae Graham said the eastbound Capitol Corridor train No. 536 was leaving Jack London Square when it struck the man at Webster Street at 3:37 p.m. The man lost some limbs and was hospitalized in critical condition, police said. Further details were not available, and the man's name has not been released. SFGate http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2290077/posts#comment Sat, 11 Jul 2009 00:33:33 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2289907/posts The biggest event of the year in Laguna Niguel, Calif., is coming up on Saturday, but Mayor Robert Ming has a message for those planning to attend: Keep your pants on. For 30 years, the town has played host to an affair dubbed "Moon Over Amtrak." Crowds line Camino Capistrano, a road that runs along the railroad tracks, and pass the day dropping their trousers every time a train rolls by... The Wall Street Journal http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2289907/posts#comment Fri, 10 Jul 2009 19:50:09 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2289696/posts CANTON TOWNSHIP, Mich. (July 9) - An Amtrak passenger train carrying about 170 people struck a car that had skirted a gate at a road crossing near Detroit on Thursday, killing all five people in the sedan, authorities said. The crossing has a gate and flashing lights that apparently were working when the car approached, said Sgt. Mark Gajeski, a police spokesman. Based on witness accounts, "it looks like they probably did go around the arm. They went around the gate," Gajeski said. AOL News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2289696/posts#comment Fri, 10 Jul 2009 15:23:09 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2283132/posts Watchdogs are an endangered species in the Age of Obama. The latest government ombudsman to get the muzzle: Amtrak Inspector General Fred Weiderhold. The longtime veteran employee was abruptly "retired" this month -- just as the government-subsidized rail service faces mounting complaints about its meddling in financial audits and probes. Question the timing? Hell, yes. On June 18, Weiderhold met with Amtrak officials to discuss the results of an independent report by the Washington, D.C., law firm Willkie, Farr and Gallagher. The 94-page report has been made publicly available through the office of whistleblower advocate Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa. It... Townhall.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2283132/posts#comment Wed, 1 Jul 2009 11:09:33 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2283102/posts WATCHDOGS are an en dangered species in the Obama Age. The latest government ombudsman to get the muzzle: Amtrak Inspector General Fred Weiderhold. The veteran employee was abruptly "retired" this month -- just as the government-subsidized rail service faces mounting complaints about its meddling in financial audits and probes. Question the timing? Hell, yes. On June 18, Weiderhold met with Amtrak officials to discuss the results of an independent report by the Washington law firm Willkie, Farr and Gallagher. The 94-page report has been made publicly available through the office of whistleblower-advocate Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa). It concluded that the... NYPost http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2283102/posts#comment Wed, 1 Jul 2009 09:34:44 GMT