As the Metrolink Turns

Amtrak recently told its people in the Los Angeles area that it would be losing the Metrolink contract for the second time. This would mean that the national operator's slump against private entities will stretch into a third decade with only a couple of victories--and even those have qualifiers. 

First, when Amtrak won back the Metrolink contract in the summer of '09, it was no-bid (i.e. the commuter agency only talked to the national operator after the wake of the Chatsworth disaster). Second, when MARC put its Penn Line up for bid, the outcome was never in doubt since that route was on the southernmost end of the NEC.