The
Creation and Evolution of Agreements for Negotiating the Public
Use of Private Assets in a Half-Century of Commuter Rail Policy
– Presented at the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning
(ACSP) and the Association of European Schools of Planning (AESOP)
Fourth Joint Congress, July 2008, in Chicago, IL
Commuter
rail service is increasingly looked to as a means for addressing
urban transportation congestion in the United States. A defining
feature of commuter rail (as opposed to other modes of rail transit)
is its ability to operate over freight railroads in conjunction
with railroad freight service. The potential for sharing infrastructure
makes commuter rail an attractive, potentially cost-effective, alternative.
However, the potential
benefits of a shared right-of-way can only be realized if an agreement
can be developed and sustained reached that clearly demarcating
responsibilities and assigns cost responsibilities. The process
of reaching such agreements has been a defining feature of commuter
rail service as it has evolved over the past half-century. The successful
functioning and renegotiation of these agreements have resulted
in their being among the longest sustained public-private-partnerships
for public transit in the United States.
This paper’s contribution
to public transportation scholarship lies in its bringing attention
to the often-overlooked area of commuter rail service, and specifically,
the functioning of contractual relationships between rail service
providers.
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