| The Long and Winding Rail Road: Chugging Towards Higher Speed Rail between Montreal and NYC |
| Written by Stephanie Coco-Palermo | |||
| Monday, 17 January 2011 11:20 | |||
 Times Square takes a look at the decades-long struggle for high-speed rail between Montreal and NYC
If you’re a commuter or frequent traveller between Montreal and New York City, chances are that high- speed rail (HSR) has been the object of your wishful thinking. For those of you who aren’t down with the high-speed rail debacle, we’ll start with a snapshot of the current status of rail service between NYC’S Penn Station and Montreal’s Central Station: the approximate 380 mile journey runs about eleven to twelve hours, depending on logjams at the border which result in 1 ½ hour to 2 hour-long delays – treks that seem archaic to European and Asian countries already well-equipped with HSR systems. Though the subject of high-speed rail was originally broached decades ago in the US, it has recently resurfaced in the form of a concrete plan for a national network outlined by the Obama administration– a plan that US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, among others, have compared to the Eisenhower Interstate System. In October 2010, the US Department of Transportation started implementing the ambitious plan, distributing $2.4 billion towards the development of 13 HSR corridors in 23 states. The amount represents a first round of funding from the $8 billion earmarked for the High Speed and Inter-City Passenger Rail Grants, as part of the mandate for infrastructure development outlined in The American Recovery and reinvestment Act (the so-called “Recovery Act”). Among the 13 identified corridors, a few have been defined as “priority corridors” – including the Northeast corridor, which features the network’s only international destination: Montreal, Quebec. Though the corridor was originally planned as a connection between Boston and Montreal, the Montreal-New York connection has gained increasing consensus in the US government, generated by lobbying and advocacy efforts by the Quebec government; after all, New York is Quebec's biggest trading partner, and Quebecers account for the highest percentage of tourists in New York City every year. Quebec’s Delegate General to New York, John Parisella, has been among the most vocal advocates for the cause, deliberating on HSR in various conferences, platforms and political circles, and even several blogs – among them, a diary of his Amtrak trip from NYC to Montreal. During a brief interview, I asked Mr. Parisella for his current perspective and forecasts for Obama’s multi-billion dollar plan. “The biggest obstacle to the Obama vision on high-speed rail has a lot to do with: how do you finance the whole operation,” Parisella begun pragmatically. Parisella was quick to add that the project needs to be promulgated as a public good –similar to the Eisenhower Interstate System - in order to build consensus. “If you see it as a fiscal expense as opposed to a public good, obviously you’re going to get a lot of resistance”, Parisella explained. Parisella is well versed on the subject of high-speed rail, but in his capacity as Quebec’s representative in New York City, his interest lies in the Northeast Corridor – a route that would include Montreal, Boston, and New York City. I asked Mr. Parisella how the originally planned Montreal-Boston route was re-imagined to include NYC. “If you compare Montreal’s economy, it compares very well to Philadelphia and Boston,” said Parisella. “The fact that Montreal is the only international destination in the Obama vision led the Premier of Quebec to say, we have a lot to do with New York City,” he continued. “Our markets are there; there’s tourism, economic development, financial interrelationships. There’s also cultural links.” Quebec Premier Jean Charest wasted no time building a task force with a specific mandate to promote high-speed rail links between Montreal and New York, headed by former Canadian Ambassador to Washington, Raymond Chrétien. Since the formation of the task force, Chrétien, Charest, Parisella, and their affiliates have met with several high profile politicos with interests in the Northeast Corridor, including New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and former Governor David Paterson. Still, technology-wise, what will constitute improved rail service between Montreal and New York or Boston has yet to be determined, as high-speed rail is not the only viable option. Parisella explained: “In the US, they make a distinction between high-speed rail and higher-speed rail. The difference is very simple – it’s that [higher-speed rail] travels under 150 MPH and it shares rail with the merchandise or freight rail network. [High-speed rail] is a dedicated track, that goes anywhere from 150 to as much as 300 MPH.” “It’s electric, and it’s just for passenger rail,” he added. I asked Parisella what kind of technology would likely connect Montreal and NYC. He proffered the following: “You will have the hybrid model - a model that will be North American.” He mused that the hybrid would likely be a shared track, with feeder tracks connecting Montreal to Boston and NYC, respectively. He added that the model could emulate a “European higher-speed model... or, you would have a rapid train similar to what you have between New York and Washington.” What currently exists between New York-Washington is the so-called “Acela “- a rapid train that shares its track with freight transportation. Though the Acela differs from HSR, Parisella, a frequent passenger on the train, says the rapid train is a “pleasant ride” that cuts on time. For commuters, cutting on time is perhaps the most attractive quality of HSR; however, as we wait for faster trains to whiz through the Northeast Corridor (which would take years, if not decades), there are some other measures that may be put in place to shave time off the current Amtrak voyage. “We know that there are things that can be done - that has to be done on the Canadian side - such as the pre-clearance at the border,” said Parisella. For some commuters, such as a Canadian CEO and entrepreneur who spoke on the condition of anonymity, pre-clearance would improve the travel experience in the Northeast Corridor by leaps and bounds. The entrepreneur in question is particularly upset with the process of crossing the border into US, specifically by train. “When I cross with my car, or by airport – it is fairly standard questioning. When we travel by train, it’s not quite questioning... it feels more like interrogation. It feels as though people who take the train fall into a different category than people who take the car or plane – so you’re made to feel like a sub-citizen. I’ve seen lots of people dragged on and off the train. I’ve seen cases of people who have broken down after they’ve gotten back on the train.” The source would like to see marked improvements in the border clearance process, particularly because he believes in the advantages of train travel. “The train is such an affordable means of travel,” he said. He expressed his belief that high-speed rail would reduce the stigma associated with rail passengers at the border, pointing out that the current non-existence of a business class renders border agents suspicious of passengers claiming to be travelling on business. “A high-speed train would bring a different clientele – thus the process would have to change,” he added. Until high-speed rail becomes a reality, the entrepreneur is doubtful that pre-clearance will be approved. “It is very apparent that the train corridor is used as a training process for new officers and border agents,” he argued. Still, Parisella remains a staunch believer that pre-clearance, though not a “slam dunk case”, is not quite a pipe dream, either. “[Pre-clearance] is going to involve the two governments, one in Ottawa and one in Washington, and we might have to deal with certain existing treaty arrangements. It’s not going to be easy, but it is possible, because the model, of course, that you have, is air travel.” In addition to pre-clearance, Parisella adds that re-examining recent market studies and the rehabilitation of the “Vermonter” track are other short-term priorities that will be actively pursued by the Quebec government’s high-speed rail task force this year, in cooperation with Governor Cuomo and Premier Charest. Parisella concludes our interview with an optimistic outlook on the future of rapid train travel in the Northeast Corridor. “Let’s say we’re projecting ourselves twenty years down the road. Imagine the vision; we’ll probably be able to go from Montreal to Toronto, back to Montreal, to New York, New York to Boston.” He adds that rapid train travel will be well-received by the tech-savvy generations. “The younger generation, the ones coming up right now, are much more open to travel with Blackberry, with iPhone, with hand computers, and therefore, driving is not a chosen alternative if they can make it as quickly by doing some other land travel.” Still, Parisella thinks rapid train will win over all generations, tech-savvy or not. “Once you build it, people will come,” he says enthusiastically. For the time being, however, we’ll continue chugging along slowly through the Adirondacks, as North America tries to catch up to Asia and Europe. Photo Caption:The Acela train, which runs on a shared track between Washington DC and New York City, currently the fastest train in the US. 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