California State Rail Plan 2005-06 to 2015-16

2005-06 – 2015-16 California State Rail Plan
DEFINITION OF COMMUTER VERSUS INTERCITY RAIL
The Federal Rail Passenger Service Act (RPSA) and subsequent legal decisions
define commuter and intercity rail service.
The RPSA (49 U.S.C. 24102) states that:
“Commuter rail passenger transportation” means short-haul rail
passenger transportation in metropolitan and suburban areas usually
having reduced fare, multiple-ride, and commuter tickets and morning and
evening peak period operations.
The Penn Central Transportation Company Discontinuance decision (338 ICC
318) was issued by the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) after a 1971
investigation held to determine whether certain trains constituted commuter
service, thus placing them outside the jurisdiction of Amtrak, which at the time
had just been created.
Specifically, the ICC concluded that a commuter service would likely include
some or all of the following features:
• The passenger service is primarily being used by patrons traveling on a
regular basis either within a metropolitan area or between a metropolitan
area and its suburbs.
• The service is usually characterized by operations performed at morning
and evening peak periods of travel.
• The service usually honors commutation or multiple-ride tickets at a fare
reduced below the ordinary coach fare and carries the majority of its
patrons on such a reduced fare basis.
• The service makes several stops at short intervals either within a zone or
along the entire route.
• The equipment used may consist of little more than ordinary coaches.
• The service should not extend more than 100 miles at the most, except in
rare instances; although service over shorter distances may not be
commuter or short haul within the meaning of this exclusion.
The RPSA (49 U.S.C. 24102) also states that:
“Intercity rail passenger transportation” means rail passenger
transportation, except commuter rail passenger transportation.
Thus, both the RPSA and the ICC specifically defined commuter rail service in the
manner detailed above, and stated that intercity rail service is all other service not
falling within the commuter rail definition. The inclusion of State-supported rail
services under the RPSA definition of "intercity" is critical because Amtrak has
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