As President upends the way things are done in D.C., I thought I’d revisit an idea I wrote about two years ago that he might just consider. Trump is big on privatizing government services (like the post office), so why not Amtrak, too?
Why does the U.S. have only one serious passenger railroad? And given its monopoly and high fares, wouldn’t a choice of rail carriers bring better service and lower prices?
Sure, Amtrak competes against the air shuttles (which are faster, but even more expensive), buses (much cheaper and slower) and, of course, cars (also slower). But why does the would-be rail rider have only one choice of railroad — Amtrak?
Well, under Federal law Amtrak has the sole right to carry rail passengers interstate (not counting the commuter railroads), but that could change. Maybe it’s time for a private company to offer an additional, alternative high-speed rail service.
Enter: AmeriStarRail LLC.
Though they would not disclose who their financial backers are, AmeriStar claims to have $5.5 billion ready to spend on its own fleet of 160 mph high-speed trains built by the same company Amtrak is using for the next generation of Acela trainsets.

Photo from Wikimedia Commons
One of Amtrak’s Avelia Liberty trains
But unlike Amtrak’s Avelia Liberty trains which will have nine cars (just for business and first class seating) AmeriStar’s would have 12 cars and offer coach seating too. That should mean lower fares and faster service than Amtrak’s 50-year-old-plus Amfleet trains, the only coach-class trains between Boston and D.C.
AmeriStar’s proposed offerings sound too good to be true: adults would be able to bring two kids under the age of 18 for free. There’d be free Wi-Fi and compartment seating like on European trains. Food service could be ordered and delivered to your seat.
And AmeriStar wouldn’t just run between Boston, New York and Washington. They’d also compete on routes like Springfield, Massachusetts to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania (via Connecticut and New York City) and offer hourly nonstops from New Haven to Penn Station taking just 99 minutes. Between DC and NYC, AmeriStar trains would run every 30 minutes at speeds up to 160 mph.

Amtrak and connecting rail lines in the Northeast
AmeriStar plans for its trains to also run north from NYC to Albany and continue from Boston up to Bangor, Maine. South of Washington they’ll run as far as Richmond, Virginia. And some trains will even serve Long Island all the way to Ronkonkoma (something Amtrak is also now considering).
Is all of this possible? Maybe. Rail experts, talking off the record, were skeptical.
They’re not sure there are enough “slots” to add more trains on the Northeast Corridor (which, by the way, is owned and run by Amtrak). The commuter railroads who’d see new competition won’t be enthusiastic (or cooperative), they said.
SEE ALSO: Some Good News For Commuters: Faster NYC Traffic; More Trains on Time, Happier Riders
When I asked Metro-North for their thoughts a couple of years ago they said they “declined to comment” and suggested I speak to Amtrak. But, despite numerous attempts, Amtrak never responded. Neither did officials at the Connecticut Department of Transportation. I wonder why.
But the pro-rider Rail Passengers Association said “AmeriStar makes a good point — high-speed trains should be affordable to all Americans” and right now they’re not.
Maybe a little competition for Amtrak will be good for us all. And maybe, just maybe, this is something our new President might actually consider?
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Contributed photo
Jim Cameron
Jim Cameron has been a Darien resident for more than 25 years. He is the founder of the Commuter Action Group, sits on the Merritt Parkway Conservancy board and also serves on the Darien RTM and as program director for Darien TV79. You can reach him at CommuterActionGroup@gmail.com.