Amtrak lost $1.1 billion in 2001 and has not made progress toward meeting Congress' goal of self sufficiency, according to a new government report released today by Transportation Department Inspector General Kenneth Mead. The report details Amtrak's $585 million cash loss for 2001, $24 million more than 2000. Mead said the railway would have to reduce its cash loss by more than $300 million to meet the deadline and cannot do so without the "cannibalization" of the company. Last summer, Amtrak mortgaged part of Penn Station in New York City to raise $300 million to continue operating through the end of the fiscal year. The report is the fourth issued by the inspector general under the 1997 Amtrak Reform and Accountability Act.
Amtrak not near self-sufficiency, new report finds
The railway would have to reduce its cash loss by more than $300 million to meet the deadline.
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