House Passes Transit Bill With Funds for Metro Rail

The House today approved a $10.1-billion transportation spending package that includes $117 million for the start-up of Los Angeles’ Metro Rail subway.

The measure, which passed on a 307-102 vote, also included enough money to keep Amtrak operating and in total authorized about $2.3 billion more than had been proposed by the Reagan Administration.

The Senate has yet to act on a transportation spending bill.

In a series of amendments approved Wednesday, the House cut about $1 billion from the levels recommended by the Appropriations Committee but kept most major spending programs intact.

The House appropriations bill includes:

--About $2.7 billion for mass transit, including continuation of operating assistance and money for new rail starts in Los Angeles and eight other cities. The Administration had sought to eliminate operating funds as well as new projects.

--About $603 million for Amtrak, the national passenger railroad, which is an 11.4% reduction from the subsidy received this year but enough to keep the railroad operating. The Reagan Administration had wanted all Amtrak money eliminated.

--About $36 million for continuing the federal airline subsidy program at a level that assures air service for about 140 small communities. The Administration had wanted the subsidies eliminated.

--Federal highway assistance of $13.25 billion and $925 million for airport construction and improvement. Both levels are about the same as this year.

Rep. William Lehman (D-Fla.), chairman of the transportation appropriations subcommittee, offered the package of amendments Wednesday that cut about $1 billion from the measure. (Story on Page 16.)

The amendments cut transit money earmarked for new projects in nine cities by about 10%. Nevertheless, the bill calls for $380 million in spending for the projects in Los Angeles; Portland, Ore.; Seattle; Miami; Santa Clara, Calif.; Atlanta; Houston, St. Louis and San Diego.

The Reagan Administration had argued against further funding of the projects, claiming federal funds will not be available to complete them.

The total cost of the projects, which range from a bus tunnel in Seattle to Los Angeles’ new subway system, is estimated at about $4.2 billion when finally completed. The Los Angeles project represents by far the largest project and accounted for $117 million of the $380 million being spent on new transit programs in fiscal 1986.