NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF RAILROAD PASSENGERS

The 'National Association of Railroad Passengers' ('NARP') was founded by Anthony Haswell on May 18, 1967 to lobby for the continuation of passenger trains in the United States. Its lobbying efforts were hampered somewhat by Democratic Party political opposition to any sort of subsidies to the privately-owned railroads, and Republican Party political opposition to nationalization of the railroad industry. The proponents were aided by the fact that few in the federal government wanted to be held responsible for the seemingly-inevitable extinction of the passenger train, which most regarded as tantamount to political suicide.

Contents

Activities

Organization

References

External links

Activities

NARP's small paid staff in Washington, DC, spends most of it's time educating members of Congress and their staffs about the value of passenger rail.
Each month, NARP publishes a monthly newsletter detailing news in the
passenger rail world. It often includes stories about related
legislation in Congress, Traveler's Advisories, and Travel Tips, with a
particular focus on Amtrak. Circulation as of October 2005 was about
18,000.
NARP also conducts interviews with media on passenger rail related
issues, and encourages its members to lobby their legislators for
funding for Amtrak and other improvements to the rail infrastructure.
The organization's website includes action alerts and news releases.
NARP members generally save 10% on Amtrak travel.[1]

Organization

NARP leadership includes a president, 4 vice presidents, secretary,
treasurer, executive director, assistant director, director of finance
and administration, and office manager. As of August 2007, the
president was George Chilson^[1].
The organization is divided into twelve membership regions for purposes of selections of board members and membership meetings. They are:
Region 1: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode
Island, Vermont.

Region 2: New York.

Region 3: Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania.

Region 4: District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia.

Region 5: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi,
North Carolina, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virgin Islands.

Region 6: Indiana, Michigan, Ohio.

Region 7: Illinois, Minnesota, North Dakota, Wisconsin.

Region 8: Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington.

Region 9: Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas (except El Paso
Co.).

Region 10: Colorado, Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota, Utah, Wyoming.

Region 11: Arizona, New Mexico, Texas (El Paso Co. only).

Region 12: California, Hawaii, Nevada.
There are also at directors at large chosen by other board members every
two years.

References

1. NARP Officers & Committees

External links

★ National Association of Railroad Passengers