The Greatest Year for Rail in Generations
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Hello, I'm Federal Railroad Administrator Joe Szabo here
to talk about some great successes in 2012,
and how we plan to build upon those successes in 2013.
2012 was one of the greatest years for rail in generations.
It was the safest year in industry history,
the result of steady declines in accidents since 2008.
Amtrak achieved record on-time performance
and set an all-time record for ridership.
Intermodal freight traffic surged above 12 million units,
close to a new record; And with record private investments
of $13 billion last year into rail infrastructure combined
with the nearly $19 billion FRA, Amtrak,
and our state partners have invested
since 2009 the American transportation network is being
transformed for decades to come.
Our goal always is to ensure continuous improvements
to railroad safety.
And that's why we're committed to work with the industry
to deploy Positive Train Control,
and why we're aggressively advancing initiatives
like Risk Reduction and System Safety programs that will lead
to an evolution in railroad safety culture: to save lives,
and to fortify the industry for its growing role
in moving people and goods.
The challenges of the 21st century will require a safe,
modern, and efficient rail network and we're focused today
on laying a foundation for it.
With our High-Speed
and Intercity Passenger Rail program,
52 construction projects in 19 states,
a $3.6 billion federal investment are either complete,
under construction, or set to begin.
But we're only getting started.
The next two construction seasons promise
to be the busiest yet and we will continue working hard
to ensure rail is moving America forward.
You can stay updated by visiting our website and by following us
on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.
Thank you.
