By Justin Franz
WASHINGTON — Passenger rail advocates and industry groups alike are applauding President-elect Joe Biden’s decision to nominate former South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg to be the next Secretary of Transportation.
Buttigieg, 38, was mayor from 2012 until 2020 and made a splash on the national political stage during a bid for the Democratic presidential nomination this year. If approved by the U.S. Senate, he would be the first openly gay person in American history to be confirmed to a presidential cabinet and the first millennial.
In announcing his pick, Biden said that Buttigieg had gained valuable experience in leading South Bend as one of the nation’s youngest mayors and launching a “Smart Streets” initiative that breathed new life into a dying downtown. As mayor, Buttigieg also supported passenger rail and backed a plan to improve South Shore Line commuter service between South Bend and Chicago.
Amtrak officials were quick to congratulate Buttigieg on his nomination and said they looked forward to working with him.
“Amtrak is excited to work with Transportation Secretary designee Pete Buttigieg to launch an era of passenger rail expansion and improvement across the nation,” said Amtrak Board Chairman Tony Coscia. “President-elect Biden knows that rail investments will support economic recovery, expanded mobility, and carbon emissions reduction and we are looking forward to working with Mayor Buttigieg and the new Administration to advance these essential goals.”
Jim Mathews, President and CEO of Rail Passengers, noted that Buttigieg had previously been elected to lead a city served by Amtrak.
“As a small-town mayor—and, more specifically, as an Amtrak mayor—Buttigieg will understand the challenges that come with keeping people physically connected to economic opportunity, the inadequacies of existing federal transportation programs, and the unacceptable timelines for review that delay far too many projects,” Mathews said. “We look forward to working with the incoming secretary on fixing those problems and connecting all Americans to a growing passenger rail network—whether they live on Wall Street or Main Street.”
Biden had been rumored to be considering a number of current and former mayors for the top transportation job, including Chicago’s Rahm Emanuel and Los Angeles’ Eric Garcetti.
Freight rail groups have also applauded Buttigieg on his selection with both the Association of American Railroads and American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association releasing messages of congratulations.
On Wednesday, Buttigieg, Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris spoke about the appointment. Buttigieg specifically talked about his love of transportation and Amtrak but noted that there might be at least one person who likes trains more: his boss. Biden received the nickname “Amtrak Joe” for his longtime support of passenger rail.
“I know that in this administration I will, at best, only aspire to be the second biggest train enthusiast,” Buttigieg said.
