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— Democrats poised to take up spending, infrastructure bills this week (finally!).
— Three dead, dozens injured during Amtrak train derailment in Montana.
— New survey says travelers are considering staying local for future vacations.
IT’S MONDAY: You’re reading Weekly Transportation, your Washington policy guide to everything that moves. Send tips, pitches, feedback and song lyrics to [email protected], [email protected] and [email protected]. You can also find us on Twitter: @TSnyderDC, @Oriana0214 and @JulianSorapuru.
Do they have the votes? House Speaker Nancy Pelosi made it official over the weekend, telling Democratic lawmakers they’ll advance the continuing resolution, Build Back Better Act and the BIF, marking a landmark week in Congress and for key components of the Biden administration’s domestic agenda.
The House already passed the temporary funding measure last week, keeping agencies afloat through Dec. 3. Pelosi is steadfast in addressing the bipartisan infrastructure deal, setting a deadline of today for getting it done.
“We will begin debate on the Bipartisan Infrastructure Framework on the Floor of the House and vote on it on Thursday, September 30, the day on which the surface transportation authorization expires,” Pelosi said in a letter to colleagues late Sunday.
News was abuzz Sunday over the Sept. 27 deadline as the California Democrat initially backed off the date because progressive counterparts said the votes still needed firming up.
“I’m never bringing to the floor a bill that doesn’t have the votes,” Pelosi said on ABC News’ “This Week“ with George Stephanopoulos, adding, “You have to go when you have the votes in a reasonable time, and we will.”
Also on Sunday, Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said that the BIF vote is unlikely to happen Monday. “The speaker is an incredibly good vote counter, and she knows exactly where her caucus stands, and we’ve been really clear on that,” Jayapal told Jake Tapper during CNN’s “State of the Union.”
Progressives want the House to first vote on the $3.5 trillion reconciliation spending package — covering social programs like family leave and education aid, but also chock-full of transportation projects, as our very own Julian E.J. Sorapuru and Tanya Snyder report. The House Budget Committee approved the unfinished plan Saturday, which is still “grasping for an endgame compromise,” write Jennifer Scholtes and Caitlin Emma.
What could upend Pelosi’s latest schedule? Like all things Congress, you’ll have to stay tuned.
DEBT LIMIT DEBATE: As GOP lawmakers insist Democrats should use the budget reconciliation process to lift the debt-ceiling cap (another point of contention for lawmakers already taking up the mammoth spending plan), the nation is barreling toward a devastating fiscal default that can happen as soon as next month with no back-up plan, reports Caitlin Emma.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell contends Democrats have plenty of time to address the issue, potentially wriggling it into the budget reconciliation process. But it’s a rare move used only four times to raise the debt limit, last applied in 1997, Caitlin writes. And, it would mean they’d have to “unlock” the budget resolution, a never-before-seen undertaking from either party.
It’s “possible,” said House Budget Chair John Yarmuth, (D-Ky.), but also “virtually impossible” with all of the answered questions involved.
AMTRAK DERAILS: An Amtrak train derailed Saturday in Montana, leaving three dead and dozens injured in the first major incident for Amtrak since 2018, an accident that could pose a stress test for the railroad’s new forced arbitration policy, our Tanya Snyder reports.
The accident, which happened near Joplin, Mont., occurred with a train operating as the westbound Empire Builder; the railroad line runs between Chicago and Seattle.
NTSB has investigators on the scene with expertise in rail, track operations, signal systems, among others. Amtrak CEO Bill Flynn on Sunday said it is cooperating with the investigative agency, the Federal Railroad Administration and local authorities. “However, until the investigation is complete, we will not comment further on the accident itself,” Flynn said.
The company’s forced arbitration policy could come into play as those involved or their families seek damages from the passenger service, Tanya writes. No word yet on what might have caused the derailment.
NOT A FINE FINE: DOT on Friday announced $1.9 million in fines against United Airlines for violating the rule against extended tarmac delays, which permits aircraft to idle awaiting takeoff for three to four hours, max, depending on the flight, without offering passengers a chance to deplane. It’s the largest tarmac delay fine imposed in DOT history, the agency said.
DOT’s Office of Aviation Consumer Protection studied 25 tarmac delays — 20 domestic, five international — between December 2015 and February 2021. However, 16 of the 25 incidents mentioned in DOT’s findings concluded that “severe weather” contributed to the delays. “The safety of our customers and employees is always our first priority — particularly during severe weather,” United said in response. The airline has 30 days from the order to pay the fine.
NATIONAL NO-FLY LIST? It’s something Delta Air Lines says may improve the travel experience. Coinciding with last week’s House T&I hearing on air rage, Delta in a memo said it’s already banned roughly 1,600 passengers from boarding its flights, and is lobbying its counterparts to share their info.
As of Sept. 21, there have been 4,385 reports of unruly-passenger incidents this year, according to the FAA.
Delta’s initiative is on par with an idea that House Transportation Chair Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) suggested during the hearing: to come up with a “common database” for passengers grounded over unruly behavior. DeFazio suggested the FAA, which already has the Special Emphasis Enforcement Program, create the potential database.
POLITICO asked the FAA if it has taken up DeFazio’s suggestion, but the agency replied it’s still “meeting with airports, airlines, unions, and others to discuss what additional steps the FAA and industry partners can collectively take to continue driving down the number of unruly passenger incidents.”
NEW HABITS OF TRAVEL: A survey conducted by Momentive, formerly SurveyMonkey, found that more than 70 percent of Americans have formed new travel habits that should give the travel industry something to think about.
Thirty-five percent of those surveyed said they’re spending less money on vacations; 28 percent plan to travel more locally; and 20 percent will travel only by car for future vacations, according to Momentive.
Meanwhile, over half of adults in the U.S. who got the vaccine booked travel in the last year and a half.
— “How a quality-of-life award for a 12-lane Utah highway sums up the debate over the future of transportation.” The Washington Post.
— “‘The barrel is empty’ and chip shortage is now expected to cost automakers $210B in sales.” eMarketer.
— “Taliban ask airlines to resume international flights to Afghanistan.” CNBC.
— “US airlines are planning to unnecessarily burn 20,000 tons of CO2 per day because of FAA rules.” Quartz.
