PLANNING FOR INTERCITY RAIL PASSENGER SERVICE AT THE STATE LEVEL

Technical feature:The major findings and recommendations developed by the Texas Transportation Inst. as part of an intercity rail passenger study are presented. A brief history of railroad construction and rail passenger service is surveyed. The causes of rail ridership decline are considered. The creation of Amtrak, a quasi-public corporation, reduced the total number of intercity passenger trains being operated by about 50%. Expansion of intercity travel modes in Texas is discussed. Alternatives for increasing corridor capacity are reviewed for costs, designs, and existing facilities. Highway systems, air routes, and metroliner intercity passenger trains need to be expanded. The existing transportation capacity in both the Dallas-Fort Worth to Houston and the Dallas-Fort Worth to San Antonio corridors will be inadequate by 1990. Transportation capacity should be increased in these areas. Rail passenger service is not as essential to the state as is rail-freight service. (7 graphs, 15 references, 3 tables)