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Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to join you all today. It’s always a pleasure to have the chance to get together with this group.

As we all know, Chicago is a city rich in rail history. And frankly, flying into either Midway or O’Hare, one only has to look out the window to see that Chicago remains the crossroads of America’s rail network.

Ordinarily, I would go on a bit in my introduction about baseball and how great it is to be the Federal Railroad Administrator, but our time is limited and I promised Phil I wouldn’t talk trash about the Cubs.

Before I address some rail-specific issues, I want to take the opportunity to briefly mention some big picture issues that inform my work. President Bush and his leadership team have articulated several key priorities, and I would be remiss in not mentioning them.

War on Terrorism

The events of Sept. 11, 2001, have obviously changed our nation. President Bush has dedicated himself to defending the American people from further harm - taking the fight to the terrorists wherever they operate.

At home, our government has taken unprecedented steps to strengthen border and port security, and improve intelligence-gathering capabilities by enhancing agency and government coordination.

Secretary Mineta and our senior management team continue to be intensely focused on preventing security threats to our transportation system. DOT has successfully created the Transportation Security Administration, now housed under the Department of Homeland Security.

Tax Cut:

Another issue of great importance to President Bush is the condition of our economy. While the American economy is in a second consecutive year of growth, it’s not growing strongly enough.

President Bush has proposed a bold plan that will boost the economy by providing tax relief for every American who pays federal income tax. Under the President’s plan, 92 million Americans would receive, on average, a tax cut of $1,083 this year. That’s real money to help pay the bills and push the economy forward.

This is tax relief that Republicans and Democrats in Congress passed in 2001 and promised for future years.

US DOT FY ‘04 Budget Proposal

The Department’s current budget represents a 6 percent increase over last year, signaling the priority this Administration places on our national transportation system.

The President’s proposed 2004 transportation budget targets a total of $14 billion, or 27 percent of the budget, toward our highest priority, the safety of the traveling public.

Secretary Mineta continues DOT’s focus on ensuring the highest levels of safety, mobility and economic growth throughout the nation’s surface, rail, maritime and aviation systems.

We’re working hard to develop a SAFER, SIMPLER and SMARTER national transportation system for all Americans.

These guiding principles provide a solid foundation for a new reauthorization cycle in both surface and aviation programs that will guide the course for these important programs for the next several years.

Surface Transportation Reauthorization

Speaking of surface transportation reauthorization, the Administration will soon unveil the details of our proposed legislation.

First and foremost, this Administration will propose reauthorization legislation that ensures the highest possible investment in our country’s critical transportation infrastructure.

We will achieve this by building upon the legacy of earlier surface transportation legislation—and look forward to working with the Congress and all affected stakeholders to ensure swift passage of this legislation by the end of 2003.

We have learned that guaranteed annual funding is one of the biggest success stories from ISTEA and TEA-21. We believe such guarantees should be retained and refined in the new legislation.

And because states and localities have impressed upon us the need to exercise a degree of autonomy in allocating such funds, our proposal calls for increased funding flexibility for State and local authorities so that they can address specific areas of concern.

We also intend to expand the range of innovative financing tools so they can leverage the federal funds they receive. To do this we still need to encourage more private sector investment in infrastructure projects.

Ideas Informing our Decision-Making

Affecting our approach to this process are three central tenets:

We seek to be Pioneers in Transportation - leaders pursuing "best practices" that benefit the taxpayers and the nation. Managing transportation assets to achieve greater safety, mobility, economic growth, security, and environmental quality.

We seek to be Architects of the Future, visionary in our understanding of what is necessary and possible in transportation.

And, finally, we are steadfast in seeking to be Defenders of the Homeland, preserving, protecting and defending our nation, our way of life, and our citizens.

In short, the President has assembled a tremendous team that is actively committed to realizing the benefits of a world-class transportation system for the betterment of the American people, and our nation as a whole.

Rail-Specific Topics

Now, let me turn to some rail-specific topics, which I know interests many of you.

Safety

Last year, I was asked to appear before several Congressional panels where I had the chance to tell the great story about the safety accomplishments of America’s rail industry.

And what a story it is. To appreciate where we are, one really needs to step back and look at safety with the big picture in mind. Just consider the fact that:

· Accidents have declined nearly 70 percent since the late 70’s;
· Over the last three years, we’ve had the lowest number of rail-related deaths and employee fatalities on record;

· Despite more than 2 million movements of hazmat cars, last year marked the lowest number of train accidents involving a release in five years; and,

· Despite 6 passenger deaths that occurred in 2002, intercity and commuter trains moved more than 2.3 billion passengers with only 2 fatalities resulting from a derailment.

Pretty impressive if you ask me -- no doubt these and other achievements could not have come about without the hard work of so many of you and your colleagues.

RRIF

On the rail development side, I’m pleased to report that the RRIF program is alive and well.

For those of you who may not be familiar with the program, RRIF, or the Railroad Rehabilitation & Improvement Finance program is intended to provide eligible borrowers direct loans or loan guarantees to develop or rehabilitate rail equipment and infrastructure.

To date, we’ve met with more than 20 applicants and identified nearly $600 million worth of potentially Federally-financed improvement projects ranging from track rehabilitation, line acquisition and equipment purchases.

We’ve also worked very hard to simplify what was viewed by some as an intimidating and technically burdensome application process.

If you haven’t done so already, I strongly encourage you learn more about RRIF program, and where possible, consider it as a viable option for financing capital improvements on your properties.

Intercity Passenger Rail Finally, I guess most of you won’t let me leave the Windy City without providing an update on Amtrak. The most important thing for this group to know is that all of the Administration’s actions to date with respect to Amtrak have been geared toward keeping Amtrak in business, recognizing the strong relationships that exist between Amtrak and many of you in this room. Without question, the political situation has never been better for a fundamental reassessment of the manner in which we deliver passenger rail services in the country.

As most of you know, last summer, Secretary Mineta unveiled the Administration’s principles for reform of intercity passenger rail as follows: · A system driven by sound economics; · The requirement that Amtrak transition to a pure operating company; · The Introduction of carefully managed competition; · The establishment a long-term partnership between states and the Federal government; · The creation of an effective public partnership to manage the capital assets of the Northeast Corridor. All of the principles are based on a core belief that passenger rail is an important part of the nation’s transportation system. A flexible and redundant national transportation system -- not to mention the added value of relieving congestion on our nation’s already congested highways –makes rail essential.

But funding alone won’t solve Amtrak’s problems. Congress followed the Administration’s lead and passed legislation incorporating much of what its been calling for in terms of Amtrak reform. While pleased with this first step in redefining intercity passenger rail in America, we must recognize it for what it is - a first step. The Administration strongly maintains that significant reform is necessary for Amtrak and intercity passenger rail to remain a viable means of transportation. The Administration is aggressively working with Amtrak to develop a relevant set of metrics that illustrates Amtrak's true operating and other business costs.

Contrary to some press reports, the FRA has put in place an active grant program. ……and we’re fully prepared to integrate Amtrak into this process. Simply put, FRA is no longer a pass-through for Amtrak funding. The Administration believes it has a fiduciary responsibility to its shareholders - in this case, its shareholders are the American people. As is the case when a bank requires a loan applicant to provide a business plan outlining how loaned funds will be spent thereby safeguarding the principal.........the Administration fully believes it has an obligation to the American taxpayer to do the same with respect to Amtrak’s appropriation.

CONCLUSION

One of the hallmarks of any successful organization is a commitment to excellence – constantly striving to make things better for the organization.

My experience tells me that both FRA and APTA, are highly committed to the public’s betterment.

Thank you for allowing me some time to share with you .Now, I’ll turn it back over to Phil so we can get going with the real reason behind why you’re here today.

Info for roundtable itself:

Fatigue Awareness and Prevention

Another safety challenge, which is a by-product of our ever-changing environment and society, is fatigue.

Now I recognize that fatigue is probably more of an issue for engineers and conductors but that said, fatigue is real and we can’t exclude anyone from the process. In the last few years, our knowledge about the causes and effects of railroad worker fatigue has grown tremendously.

Working together, rail labor, rail management, the NTSB and FRA have helped make the North American Rail Alertness Partnership (NARAP) a model cooperative for dealing with this far-reaching safety issue.

While I’m impressed by the many industry-wide fatigue initiatives such as controlled napping, I’m all too aware that the industry does not have a comprehensive fatigue management program that effectively addresses the many fatigue related issues facing our Nation’s railroaders.

I continue to strongly encourage the industry to seize the opportunity to work together in partnership to implement comprehensive fatigue management programs that are based upon the latest scientific research. The industry can ill-afford to let this opportunity slip away - and let’s face it……….it’s no fun having your own destiny shaped for you which no doubt will happen if Congress gets involved.