Amtrak officials said the railroad service would halt plans to turn a segment of the Southwest Chief rail line from Dodge City, Kansas, to Albuquerque, New Mexico, into a bus route during fiscal year 2019.
During a recent Senate Commerce Committee hearing, Sen. Tom Udall (D-NM) secured a commitment from Amtrak Chief Operating Officer Scot Naparstek to stop pursuing the proposal of replacing the train with buses for the Southwest Chief.
“We plan on running the Southwest Chief as-is through fiscal year 2019,” Naparstek said in response to Udall’s inquiry, committing to halting Amtrak’s proposal.
Udall has long been a staunch advocate of the line, stating that it helps boost local economies and connect rural communities in New Mexico, like Gallup and Las Vegas, to the rest of the nation.
He has also helped lead bipartisan efforts with Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-NM) in the Senate to secure an additional $50 million in federal funding to help maintain the railroad service in the 2019 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies (THUD) appropriations bill.
The Southwest Chief runs daily between Chicago and Los Angeles, connecting towns and cities across the western United States and providing train and long-distance passenger service, particularly through rural areas.