are working on further cuts., DOWNLOAD AN AMTRAK INTERNAL MEMO ON TRAIN CANCELLATIONS. Im certain the long-distance network is going to be very different longer term. Given all that we have read in both this article and the comments that accompany it, putting even one more dollar into the Amtrak bank account it is a BIG mistake. The 401K retirement program match is also immediately discontinued. He is not an accountant. The National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) has submitted its own request to Congress for $2.34 billion in federal appropriations in fiscal year 2021, a 17 percent increase over their FY 2020 enacted appropriations and 57 percent ($854 million) above the amount the Trump Administration requested on behalf of the railroad. Mr. Flynn would be the third veteran executive from the transportation industry to run Amtrak in the last three years. and state [supported corridor] trains bearing their share of the national But we are taking this action to help protect everyone. Amtrak generates revenues from private cars by charging operators to haul the cars either behind regularly scheduled trains or on their own special moves. Richard Anderson appeared in high school plays, served a hitch in the Army and, upon his discharge, began doing summer stock, radio work, a movie bit part (a wounded soldier in Twelve O'Clock High (1949)) and all the other minor jobs required of your basic struggling actor. Dont you think there will be bail-outs? Over the past three or four years, it Does he know how Amtraks inventive compensation processes work, or is he just guessing? On behalf of the entire Board, we thank you for everything you do for the company. He retired as Delta's CEO effective May 2, 2016, and was executive chairman of the Delta Air Lines board of directors for an additional five months. The average Amtrak hourly pay ranges from approximately $17 per hour for a Clerk to $68 per hour for a Software Engineer. Anderson served as Chief Executive Officer of Northwest Airlines from 2001 to 2004, Executive Vice President of United Healthcare from 2004 to 2007, and as CEO of Delta Air Lines from 2007 to 2016, which would later merge with Northwest. Flynn, 66, has been a successful leader across multiple modes of transportation, including rail, maritime and aviation. In truth, I dont think anyone even wants to. It is, by definition, a public/private partnership. Implementing a voluntary time off program for non-union employees, or reducing weekly hours to 32 hours per week and asking for voluntary retirements. Gardner should be doing 10 years in the slammer for violating the public trust. A total of $3 million in electric-traction maintenance costs were assigned to non-Northeast Corridor routes. that unpaid leave, uncompensated reduced hours and early retirement be taken And cost cutting through 2017 management buyouts eliminated field personnel and resulted in a loss of institutional knowledge perhaps the biggest such loss in the companys 47-year history that has permanently diminished U.S. passenger-rail expertise. Richard H. Anderson (businessman) - Wikipedia As Trains was preparing this report, the Rail Passengers Association issued a white paper titled, Amtraks Route Accounting: Fatally Flawed, Misleading, and Wrong. We highlight some of its findings such as a snow-removal charge for a station in Florida. Anderson says Amtrak will meet the commitment in current labor agreements calling for a 3.5% wage increase July 1, but encourages labor leaders to consider delaying (not canceling) it until Amtrak riders return. If Mayor Pete ignores this report, fails to take action, then any pro-passenger rail statements he makes from here on out are hollow. But transit advocates warned that fixing the tunnels while they were being used at full capacity during rush hours would inevitably disrupt the New York regions already precarious commute. Notably, if the focus is properly narrowed to qualifications The family followed railroad work from Galveston to Dallas and Amarillo. Mr. Anderson said that Mr. Flynn had sentimental ties to railroading, given that his father had been an engineer and some other members of his family had worked in the industry. The undeniable and exacting reality facing Amtrak now and into the foreseeable future is the horrendous unsustainable that songwriter Steve Goodman popularized with his 1971 City of New Orleans lyrics15 cars and 15 restless riders, three conductors and 25 sacks of mail. For Amtrak today, the riders on many trains are fewer, and forget the mail. I think Gardner has finally gotten it into his little head that if he touches the national network, he will be out in the street looking for a job. Join Today! Yet Amtrak has been designated by the Department of Homeland He would step in as Amtraks finances have been improving but its political fortunes remain turbulent. There are plenty of others motivated by what Mr. Shigley above describes. Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Nick Zieminski. News & Reviews News Wire Amtraks money mystery, Why we dont really know how trains perform financially. ANDREW Another possible outcome is that the stimulous (money that the government will print if it doesnt first run out of ink) would include a rider to maintain all current routes. . In theory, choosing an independent entity like Volpe to devise an accounting system would help management keep the company solvent. He was accused of engaging in sexual acts with a minor between Jan. 1, 2020, and Dec. 31, 2020, a felony . But do either one have the spine to deal with by firing the Board, Flynn, and especially the Gestapo officer-faced Stephen Gardner? Fare-paying passengers have vanishedalmost entirely on Northeast Corridor Acela trains; significantly on all others. On March 2, 2020, it was announced that Anderson would step down as CEO on April 15, 2020, after fulfilling his three-year commitment to the company. now, which elsewhere in America are darkening family futures as did locusts the end point of the coronavirus is.. A resounding Amen to Mr. Faheys post. Volpe describes another rough estimation, asset usage allocation, as a synthetic substitute for interest and depreciation. Amtrak CEO Richard Anderson is intent on reshaping the state-owned passenger railway into an economically-efficient inter-city operator. it is interesting to note that an outgoing executive officer with less than a month of time left in his currentposition is stating policies which could affect the organization for a year or more in the future. Not covered by Amtrak Performance Tracking are Northeast Corridor track maintenance costs. We cant just count on Congress to close our gap., Part of that gap will be closed, Anderson said, by first cutting NCTQ Teacher Contract Database town hall meeting to lay out a survival plan whose core is to avoid involuntary [1] At Northwest, Anderson was initially charged with labor relations and government affairs. Anderson is a liar and a stooge for Trump ! Staff writer Juliana Reyes contributed reporting. Accountability is a something that no longer exists. Keystone Service, running between Harrisburg and New York, as well as its Pennsylvanian trains between New York and Pittsburgh have been cancelled. But, he added, Rest assured, were going to take good care of those tunnels.. financial contributions from private citizens and the business community. network, the loss gets that much bigger.. Most of them dont even seem to understand fundamental accounting principles. Photo courtesy Amtrak. Get the newest photos, videos, stories, and more from Trains.com brands. The Silver Star and Silver Meteor still call at a facility miles from the center city, bereft of convenient rental-car or public-transportation connections. Subscribers, sign in to access exclusive content. Richard Anderson stepped down as CEO on April 15, 2020 a year ago! Because Amtrak has many activities and types of expenses, says Volpes latest methodology summary, from September 2017, Amtrak Performance Tracking uses 45 different allocation statistics. These include: Identifying these metrics provides a roadmap of how otherwise amalgamated costs, including over $1 billion in general and administrative expenses, are to be assigned to each train or operation. In need of $1 billion, Amtrak cuts management pay as it faces Richard Anderson is now a railroad guy. View Library Salaries List. Amtrak service is vital to millions of Americans across the nation and by improving the customer experience, driving safety, and strengthening our partnership with states and other stakeholders, we can do much more for the American people, Flynn said in a statement. Yes, Amtrak families will feel financial pain, beginning Top Salaries. Though not explicitly asking for relief from a scheduled July 1, 2020, raise for union employees, Anderson concluded the call with the hope that we have to do what we have to do to come back strong after the pandemic, and will do our level best to not have anyone at Amtrak involuntarily lose their job. Updated at 7:15 a.m. to include suspension of Acela service. off 10,000 or 15,000 people, that would be far more demoralizing. So, CURTIS, you can forget about your sensible position. The question remains how much of that overhead are we going to take responsibility for when we have no input. She had just spent two days in Washington, D.C., with mediation trying to figure out how we are going to get to the point where the states are assuming an appropriate amount of cost.. Anderson also assumed the role of co-CEO on that date, serving alongside Moorman. Sign-up for email today! For example a state pension fund might be under water if its accountants based pension payments on the expectation of, say, 8% perpetual return in investments when the actual return was well under. (Assuming they can get past the partisan debates and arguments about how many trillions of $$$ to spend on Corona Virus bailouts). In the end, a company is only as good as its people. Anderson sends farewell message to Amtrak employees NEWSWIRE - Trains The New York Times first reported that former Delta Air Lines CEO Richard Anderson will step down as Amtrak CEO in favor of William Flynn, the former CEO of cargo and charter airline Atlas Air. Subsequently Amtrak confirmed the news . In his early career, he served as a prosecutor and corporate attorney, before moving into executive positions. In part, this was because in striving to achieve a glide path to self-sufficiency, as then-President George Warrington promised, its reporting systems lost track of expenses and the money coming in to pay them. Its Northeast Corridor service is running about 40% of normal weekday schedules, including Northeast Regional and Acela services. A spokeswoman for Atlas said that Mr. Flynn would remain the companys chairman. DOT Inspector Generals report. They would also have to answer to the Volpe Transportation Center, which played a significant role in developing Amtraks cost accounting systems. Its been a well known fact for many years that Amtraks funny money accounting system would not stand up to GAAP rules. Its a miracle that ANY trains run. Most accountants and managers learn the problems associated with managing using allocated costs; Amtrak (and Volpe) has evidently learned nothing. While Anderson served as Amtrak CEO as a public service (taking one dollar per year salary), the Wall Street Journal reported that Flynn will earn $475,000 per year. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune) Unlimited Members, sign in to enjoy sitewide access. If I had run my business that way, Id be in jail. Citing studies from 2005 or 2014 or 2017 without verifying whether Amtrak management took on board the recommendations contained in them is irresponsible. In 2017, Amtrak sharply curtailed the amount of information publicly disclosed in its Monthly Performance Report (from 66 pages in August to 7 pages in September). Thats reality, and we best face reality and make the very best we can, be calm about it, do what we have to do, and position Amtrak to come back strong when we are on the other side of the pandemic.. Actor: Paths of Glory. He also addressed funding requests to Congress to keep trains running, and how management plans to trim expenses, including unspecified changes to the long-distance network. Libraries. Anderson leaves with a much-improved safety record for the railway and a. Amtrak Contact 202 906.3860 About Amtrak Amtrak offers a more comfortable and convenient travel experience with free Wi-Fi on most trains, plenty of leg room and no middle seat. Amtrak: Past, Present, Future, available from Simmons-Boardman Books, 800-228-9670, www.transalert.com. His most prominent roles were as CEO of several large companies in the transportation industry: Northwest Airlines (20012004), Delta Air Lines (20072016), and Amtrak (20172020). Amtraks accounting systems probably perform millions of transactions every week. The American people seem to be content to just listen to the conversation, blindly accept the consequences of inaction, and then wonder why somebody didnt do something about the situation before it was too late. The key is consistency of the allocations, rumbustiousness of the methods, and strong follow-up audits. Amtrak reported a loss of $29.8 million in its last fiscal year compared with a loss of $170.6 million in the prior fiscal year. Amtrak's money mystery - Trains It aint gonna happen. need to be aggressive in preserving our cash, he said. Paul Smith, who authored or published those white papers that you site? Unless Amtrak can begin to expand its offerings, it will simply continue to limp along on the public dole. Amtrak treats these as a capital expenditure rather than showing them as part of operating expenses. Section 209 of 2008s Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act required operating authorities of short-distance trains to pick up a greater percentage of operating costs as determined by Amtrak. Eleanor D. Acheson. In April, Trains filed a Freedom of Information Act request asking for details of their total compensation, including bonuses. But several years ago, the company began paying bonuses to managers who meet financial goals, largely based on trimming expenses. Previously, he was CEO of Delta Airlines, which after weathering the horrors of Furthermore, Amtraks new boses have adopted an active growth strategy, and congress is cristal clear that they want the LD trains to continue, and the message has gotten through. . Amtrak still is trying to win funding to complete major repairs and a new rail tunnel under the Hudson River in the heavily traveled northeast U.S. corridor. News & Reviews News Wire Amtrak CEO tells employees of ridership drops, pay cuts, other plans NEWSWIRE, Capital spending slashed, long-distance capacity to be reduced; other changes still possible. put on hold owing to their criticality to keeping trains moving, and principal Rethinking Amtrak - International Railway Journal Amtrak Culture | Comparably Working without a salary or an annual bonushe probably doesn't need the money, having left Delta with $72 million in company stockAnderson is determined to move Amtrak toward. Wed like to avoid it, but if we cant get the kind of funding out of Congress that we need, then we need to face that issue and will have a contingency plan to do that. Richard Anderson. Imagine a real business that was frequently selling out but wouldnt add capacity because extra sales would cost it money. This is absolutely insane. Now we are moving into an economy of 100% bailout and 0% investment. Flynn has agreed to completely forego his annual salary from the outset. irresponsible., We cant force our customers to get on our trains, Anderson said. Longtime taekwondo master in Little Rock pleads no contest in sexual darken skies in the Book of Exodus. Individual salaries will vary depending on the job, department, and location, as well as the employee's level of education, certifications, and additional skills. That needs to change NOW. You ought to be ashamed of yourself. Amtrak Hires Atlas Air CEO William Flynn to Run National - WSJ In response, the company offered no numbers, only this statement: National assets are the nations core rail assets shared among Amtrak services, including systems for reservations, security, training, training centers, and other assets associated with Amtraks national transportation system. Now with the outbreak, Anderson said, full year revenues are projected to be down $1 billion and the company projects a $840 million loss even with expense reductions of $110-$150 million. Former Delta CEO Out As Head Of Amtrak - View from the Wing Thats the question. With our state and commuter partners, we move people, the economy and the nation forward, carrying more than 30 million Amtrak customers for each of the past eight years. Subscribers, sign in to access exclusive content. those riders, only 3% actually rode end-to-end. Travelers will be hurt if budget for long-distance routes cut, Amtrak His earlier cash burn reference also implied that this was the case, a contention that has been repeatedly challenged by the Rail Passengers Association and elected officials along those routes. . Richard Anderson CEO / President - - The average Amtrak executive compensation is $230,927 a year.The median estimated compensation for executives at Amtrak including base salary and bonus is $232,242, or $111 per hour. April 15, has won no popularity contests for a variety of managerial decisions Vice President, Government Affairs and Corporate Communications. solution truly takes a village, meaning all hands wisely focused on the present Top 10 Salaries. Amazing that Andersons Golden Child the Acela is the first to fall the obviously weak link in the Amtrak chain yet he turns it around to make it sound as if the LD network is the weakest using the Amtrak voodoo accounting to try and back it up. WASHINGTONAmtrak Chief Executive Richard Anderson is stepping down after three years and will be replaced by the former CEO of Atlas Air Worldwide . Amtrak, Struggling to Keep Trains Running, Chooses a New Leader, https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/02/nyregion/amtrak-ceo-william-flynn.html. Amtrak documents received in mid-October revealed only that both men were eligible to receive up to $500,000 in annual bonuses, based on goals specified in written memoranda they agreed to with the Amtrak board of directors. Speculation is that the co-signing with Related is an attempt to reverse Trump Administration opposition to Gateway. We should be very afraid of what is about to happen if Amtrak Joe spends all this money he has appropriated to improve Amtrak. As America increasingly is sheltering in place, losing unprecedented numbers of jobs and retirement savings, fearful of COVID-19, and facing a stress level unfamiliar except to those who have endured war zones, Amtrak and its workforce face only unpleasant choices if the railroad and their jobs are to . government restrictions are put in place, Anderson said. Employee salary and payroll records for 1,364 fire departments and other fire protection employers. If the documents misrepresented the facts, management would have to answer to the Amtrak IG as well as the DOT IG. Amtrak is not a government agency, but it isnt a private corporation either. [See Passenger Train Game Changer, October 2013.] The pay cuts take effect for the first pay period in April, reflected in the employees April 17th paychecks. Hirst and Anderson left Continental for Northwest Airlines in 1990, with the latter serving as a deputy general counsel for the airline. the future, and to assure they do, the day-to-day struggle continues to keep Northeast Amtrak Executive Leadership | Amtrak Judging from the ridership figures above the Acela should be the first to go.. down 99% poor performer even before the outbreak. Few railroad passenger vehicles have had as long a lifespan as the Budd Rail Diesel Car. But I guess thats the government way. As an example, he cited Baltimores B&P Tunnel [see The Overshadowed Tunnel, February 2020 Trains]. We have a great team. This is a joke, right? AMTRAK board to replace CEO: Anderson out - Flynn in Other questionable allocations or indefensible errors noted in the Passenger Association report include: The Miami error was caught by the station manager there and revealed in the Government Accountability Offices 2016 report, and state operating authorities continue to comb invoices for questionable allocations. Allocating so many costs also means that local management no longer has much responsibility to manage them since they are not their problem. Whats a billion or two for Amtrak in a bill that will will total two trillion? Who is this person? ' These are scary scenarios if it means discontinuing entire routes. In need of about $1 billion in supplemental funding to battle an unprecedented drop in ridership, Amtrak has now taken aggressive" steps to cut the pay of top staff and other measures, the company confirmed Saturday. reservations for Acela are down 99%, doesnt always want to properly fund us, and to states and private companies As published in the Atlanta Business Chronicle on Sept. 15, 2017 Make no mistake about it. It was developed at the request of Congress in 2005 to definitively categorize the companys expenses, according to how and where they are incurred. Anderson's parents both died of cancer while he was . Amtrak has to balance meeting passenger needs with a $40 billion backlog on necessary repair investments, Anderson says. That deluge accelerated their deterioration, leading to more urgent demands from Amtrak officials for federal funding of a new pair of tunnels. Wilner is a past president of the Association of Transportation Law Professionals. William J. Flynn, 66, will succeed Richard Anderson, 65, as Amtraks chief executive on April 15, the company announced on Monday. Amtrak Picks Delta's Former Chief to Lead It Through Challenging Time Amtrak names new CEO to head money-losing passenger railroad A comparison of the relative ridership drops (NEC vs. LD Amtrak trains) doesnt make strong case for the NEC business focus of Amtrak. That pair of single-track tunnels poses one of the greatest threats to Amtraks service and to transit in the metropolitan area and throughout the Northeast. and interest to be paid on existing loans. seeking to curtail long-distance routes. the current situation. ), In that 2013 document, the Department of Transportation Inspector General determined that Amtrak Performance Tracking directly assigns 90% of its revenue to a given route, but Amtrak assigns only 20% of its costs and allocates the rest. A 2016 report by the Government Accountability Office states, Indirectly allocating a high percentage of costs, rather than directly assigning costs, increases the risk that revenues and expenses for a cost center or line of business will be misstated.. E.g., New Orleans-Florida, Chicago-Florida, Los Angeles-Las Vegas-Salt Lake City. Too bad he didn't have a "Save Amtrak, Fire Anderson" baseball cap with him. Daily ridership is down 90% while future bookings are down 85% year-over-year, according to Amtrak. Amazing that it has survived for 50 years. But there will be no more spending on specifically what the root cause of the problem was at the time, [and] the Moreover, he performed his study for an advocacy group with a dog in the hunt, which is not likely to produce an independent outcome. but how can we get amtrak to go back to full dinning on the lakeshore limited , the silver star and the capital limited and what be done to get amtrak to revoked excursions and carriage of private cars ? We appreciate your support as we work our way through this crisis together., Amtrak confirmed that it has taken aggressive measures.". As America increasingly is sheltering in place, losing unprecedented numbers of jobs and retirement savings, fearful of COVID-19, and facing a stress level unfamiliar except to those who have endured war zones, Amtrak and its workforce face only unpleasant choices if the railroad and their jobs are to survive. Get your questions about railroads and railroading answered. In business 101, one learns that no business can cut its way to profitability. When he took on the role of CEO, Anderson signed a three-year contract. In this instance, we dont have clear direction of what Why the GAO doesnt force them to turn their numbers over to an independent auditor I dont know, unless of course that would reveal some back door shenanigans with money and Congressman. designing a new tunnel a decade away. . BNSF reopens track at site of Wisconsin derailment (updated), Unifor ratifies contract with Canadian National, Driver of truck in accident that killed NS conductor pleads not guilty, Two Metra lines disrupted as Amtrak locomotive derails at Chicago Union Station. Corridor bridges, catenary, signals, track and tunnels in a state of good We analyze collective bargaining agreements, evaluation handbooks, salary schedules, and other documents to distill district policy across key topics such as salary, evaluation, and teacher work day. Salary & Benefits | Join the State Police Richard Anderson, president and chief executive, says this marks . In November, Amtrak said it had set records for ridership, revenue and financial performance for the year ended Sept. 30, 2019, including 32.5 million customer trips, a year-over-year increase of 800,000 passengers. The goal is to keep as many people employed as possible, Anderson said. . Obtaining directs costs is more efficient, but allocating costs does not necessarily produce a bad outcome. Amtrak CEO Wants To Be A Good 'Steward' Of The Country's Rail - WBUR A "Sully" Moment For Amtrak's Anderson - Railway Age Bookings are down 99% on one route, almost as high on other routes, more states each day are on lockdown, virtually no one is riding the trains, and your post is the best you can come up with? Northeast Corridor service by 40%, and are contemplating stopping Acela service because we dont have Between February and July 2016, he sold $15.9 million worth of Delta stock. $59,612 - Starting salary (during Academy training and first year) $84,331 - After one year. Those numbers will worsen as more Or is all their pro-Amtrak talk just that? Under current directives, which provide no incentive for revenue gains (because the companys regional marketing positions have been eliminated), what Amtrak manager would advocate for the venue change? Members enjoy 15% off any purchase in our store. As for Amtraks current travails, Anderson said the railroad is in line for a $500 million congressional grant in the first of expected stimulus measures intended as a financial bandage through June. The relationship between the government and Amtrak is almost a pure definition of Fascism. Until Dec. 21, the two men will. These proposed corridors would be the responsibility of the states to fund & I dont think many will take the bait, so when Amtrak mgmt finally eliminates the LD routes the secret will be out about what a dog the NEC is & hopefully that will be the end of Amtrak. Protect the workers and press on with needed projects.