With help from Brianna Gurciullo and Tanya Snyder
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— The top Democrat on the Senate committee overseeing aviation is urging airlines to implement better social distancing policies as photos keep emerging of passengers crowded shoulder to shoulder.
— Auto manufacturers are firing back up this week, but many questions remain about the safety of workers and fate of the industry.
— Two new nominees for Amtrak’s board of directors are about to join several other picks in Senate purgatorty.
IT’S TUESDAY: Thanks for tuning in to POLITICO’s Morning Transportation, your daily tipsheet on all things trains, planes, automobiles and ports. Get in touch with tips and feedback: [email protected] or @samjmintz.
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CANTWELL CALLS FOR SPREADING PASSENGERS OUT: Maria Cantwell, Senate Commerce’s top Democrat, is asking DOT to provide guidelines on social distancing to airports and airlines, as photos of passengers packed into planes continue circulating on social media. “The department’s guidance should clearly lead the airlines to either keep middle or adjacent seats open, or limit capacity of aircraft to a level that allows adequate social distancing,” Cantwell wrote in a letter to Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao. Cantwell previously asked for aviation-specific guidelines from the White House’s coronavirus task force.
In the vacuum of federal guidance, airports, like airlines, have started to institute their own policies aimed at protecting passengers and employees. State lawmakers in Hawaii recently signed off on spending $36 million on a public health screening system for airports, which would involve taking thermal scans of passengers. According to the Honolulu Star Advertiser, the system could be up and running in two months. The Seattle-Tacoma International Airport will also begin screening for fevers in the coming weeks, the Seattle Times reports.
MAILBAG: The Small Business and Entrepreneurship Council joined the general aviation industry in asking Congress to suspend aviation fuel taxes paid by non-commercial operators. “This temporary suspension of taxes is similar to what the commercial airlines received and will assist thousands of small businesses, farms, and communities that depend on general aviation,” wrote the group’s president.
IN OTHER GA NEWS: The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association released a set of guides to help pilots safely get back in the skies as states slowly start to loosen coronavirus restrictions. One is a flight operations guide, designed to help flight schools, flying clubs, and others reopen. The other is a proficiency plan for individual pilots looking to resume flying after taking some time off during quarantine.
Related: The National Air Transportation Association is asking the FAA for an extension through September of exemptions to the existing timelines for training and qualification for ground personnel and crew members.
HIGH STAKES REOPENING FOR AUTO INDUSTRY: As auto plants ramp back up this week, a key question looms: will consumer demand increase enough for them to avoid needing federal aid? As Pro’s Sabrina Rodriguez reports, a failure to successfully restart could lead to thousands of lost jobs and force Congress and the Trump administration to step in.
Some in the industry are optimistic: “There are going to be hiccups from time to time, but our guys [auto and parts manufacturers] are confident they can make this work in this new world of social distancing manufacturing,” one auto industry source told Sabrina.
Others are worried: “If we have to close again? Good luck. You’ll see a lot of [auto suppliers] will go out of business,” said Flavio Volpe, president of Canada’s Automotive Parts Manufacturers’ Association.
Ford, which is reopening nine plants, is taking a high-tech approach to protecting workers. As NBC News reported, workers will be wearing watches that vibrate when they get too close to each other and the plants will be equipped with cameras that give real time temperature readings.
ICYMI: Check out the deep-dive on the clash over the government’s role in worker safety as businesses reopen from POLITICO’s Rebecca Rainey.
A RADICAL ABOUT-FACE: Transit has long been the choice of the socially conscious, eager to reduce emissions and traffic jams. But now the public good demands that people stay off buses and trains to stop the spread of the coronavirus. Transit providers have had to change their messaging to tell people to stay away if they possibly can, and they’re reorienting their service to focus on the low-income essential workers who are still commuting. That means agencies can cut extra rush hour service and downtown connectors but have to keep service frequent enough to get people to work on time, at all hours, with enough buses and trains running that people can maintain social distancing.
An uncertain future: The reopening of more businesses will make social distancing on buses and trains even harder, and will make it all the more urgent that those with other options use those instead. Skyrocketing unemployment means fewer commuters, and work-from-home orders could continue for a long time. But some hope that the reset could prove to be a good time to bring about needed improvements like bus network redesigns. Our Tanya Snyder has the details for Pros this morning, and don’t forget to check out POLITICO’s newest newsletter, “The Long Game,” which focuses on sustainability.
NEW BLOOD FOR AMTRAK’S BOARD: President Donald Trump nominated two new faces for the railroad’s board of directors on Monday, lining up a mayor and a long-time rail and transit official to fill open spots.
The picks: Sarah Feinberg, former FRA administrator and current interim president of New York City Transit, and Chris Koos, mayor of Normal, Ill.
Settle in: Amtrak’s board has a muted role compared with other companies, overseeing the national railroad that also has to answer to Congress. But its nominees regularly end up entangled in congressional disputes over Amtrak’s role and specific routes. There are three nominations to the board still pending, one of which, for former congressman Leon Westmoreland, has been stagnating for two-and-a-half years. The Senate Commerce Committee is due to vote on their nominations on Wednesday.
For what it’s worth: Feinberg told the New York Post she would remain in her role in New York if confirmed.
NOT TODAY: The FAA postponed the Commercial Space Transportation Advisory Committee’s virtual meeting, which was supposed to be today. The agency cited “a variety of issues, not unlike other cancellations during these unique circumstances,” and said the meeting will be rescheduled as soon as possible.
Vaughn Jennings, who recently left Airlines for America after seven years, has landed at Bullpen Strategy Group, a Republican consulting firm that was recently rebranded from Definers Public Affairs after controversy over its work for Facebook.
John Walsh has joined the Short Line Safety Institute as director of hazardous materials programs. Walsh was a 20-year veteran of the NYPD before he began a second career in the rail industry, working for CSX Transportation and Genesee & Wyoming Railroad Services.
— “Thinking of buying a bike? Get ready for a very long wait.” New York Times.
— “Opinion: Airplanes don’t make you sick. Really.” The Washington Post.
— “The new airline travel: Fewer flights, more layovers, rules for bathrooms.” The Wall Street Journal.
— “Should law subsidize driving?” New York University Law Review.
— “Supplier restarts flow of critical truck parts to Detroit automakers.” Reuters.
DOT appropriations run out in 134 days. The FAA reauthorization expires in 1,230 days. Highway and transit policy is up for renewal in 134 days.
