French firm will run trains

Oct. 17--WOODBRIDGE -- Virginia Railway Express intends to end a 17-year partnership with Amtrak, and has recommended turning train maintenance and operations over to a company best known for running high-speed trains in France.

Keolis Rail Services America won out over Amtrak and Bombardier

Starting in July 2010 and running through 2015, it would staff VRE trains with conductors, locomotive engineers and maintenance workers, according to a resolution passed by the VRE Operations Board yesterday. The contract could be renewed twice, for five years each time.

Keolis (key-O-lis) submitted a lower bid than Amtrak, but customer service was at the heart of the decision, according to several VRE board members who spoke after the unanimous vote.

"Our goal is to lift up customer service and improve the passenger experience," said Stafford County Supervisor Paul Milde, vice chairman of VRE's board. "We are committed to making VRE a standout amongst passenger-rail systems. This decision today brings us closer to that end."

VRE's recommendation must be approved by the Northern Virginia and the Potomac and Rappahannock transportation commissions before the contract can be awarded.

Currently, about 110 Amtrak employees are contracted to work on VRE trains and in VRE's maintenance yards in Prince William and Spotsylvania counties, at the southern end of the railway's two lines.

After a new contract is awarded, and the Amtrak contract expires in June, Amtrak workers can continue working for Amtrak on another route or stay at VRE and work for Keolis.

Workers who switch to Keolis will keep their current salary, benefits, retirement package, and accrued vacation and sick time. They will also get a signing bonus for moving to Keolis.

Keolis hopes to recruit about 70 percent of the Amtrak staff now working on VRE trains, said Mark Roeber, VRE manager of government relations and public affairs.

Retaining worker pay and benefits was a crucial negotiating point for board members, who stressed they were happy with the day-to-day service of the men and women collecting tickets and driving VRE's trains.

VRE's communications with Amtrak management, however, was not always effective, Roeber said.

For instance, Amtrak management often focused on what employees were required to do, rather than encouraging actions that would improve customer service but exceed requirements, Roeber said.

Amtrak also submitted a higher bid -- at $17.2 million a year, plus $2.2 million in first-year transition costs, Roeber said. Keolis' bid was $16.9 million a year, with $1.7 million in transition costs.

Before the vote, representatives speaking on behalf of Amtrak workers pointed out the company had successfully run VRE's trains for 17 years with no fatalities. Also, a recent passenger survey showed 82 percent of riders gave VRE crews an "A" or "B" grade for being courteous, and 86 percent gave crews top marks for being helpful.

" Amtrak is saddened and disappointed in the recommendation, as our employees have invested a great deal of heart, energy and effort in providing excellent service to VRE passengers since 1992," Amtrak spokesman Steve Kulm said in a statement released after the vote.

Keolis Rail Services America is part of Keolis, an international company based in Paris that employs more than 40,000 people and operates bus, trolley and train service in France and several other European counties. It operates more than 5,000 trains a day and moves more than 360 million passengers a year. Its parent company is SNCF, which operates high-speed rail service in France.

Operating and maintaining VRE trains will be the first service Keolis provides in the United States.

"It's a high-profile service," said Steve Townsend, executive vice president of Keolis Rail Services America, explaining why VRE was its first venture. "It's in the nation's capital."

Townsend expects VRE passengers to notice improved interactions with conductors.

"The profile for us is, No. 1, safety, and customer service a close second," Townsend said. "We think we can bring both of those to the project."

Dale Zehner, VRE's chief executive officer, said Keolis will bring VRE closer to providing what he described as "Big Mac" service -- providing the same customer experience every day, on every train, just like McDonald's does with its menu.

"People want to ride VRE," Zehner said, "but they're only going to ride it if the value's there."

Kelly Hannon: 540/374-5436

Email: khannon@freelancestar.com

To see more of The Free Lance-Star or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://fredericksburg.com/flshome . Copyright (c) 2009, The Free Lance-Star, Fredericksburg, Va. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com , call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.