IL SR0152

Amtrak has statutory preference over freight transportation on shared rail lines under federal law (49 U.S.C. § 24308(c)), but host railroads have consistently ignored this requirement resulting in poor on-time performance.

During fiscal year 2019, poor on-time performance caused 6.5 million customers on state-supported and long-distance trains to arrive late, and improving on-time performance by just 5% would save Amtrak $12.1 million annually.

Historical data shows that when enforcement mechanisms existed (such as under the 2008 Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act), long-distance train on-time performance improved dramatically from 56% to 77% within two months, but performance declined after enforcement provisions were removed in 2014.

Currently only the U.S. Attorney General can enforce Amtrak's preference rights through civil action, but has done so only once since Amtrak's creation in 1971.

Illinois Senate urges passage of federal legislation (such as the "Rail Passenger Fairness Act") to grant Amtrak a private right of action to enforce its preference rights directly in federal district court, and urges the Illinois Congressional Delegation to support such legislation.