Congressman Joe Pitts has joined Sen. Bob Casey in calling for a meeting between Amtrak and Lancaster County officials to resolve cost overruns in the Lancaster train station renovation project.
Amtrak, which is providing some of the labor in the $12 million renovation, informed county official recently that it would be increasing its bill for the work from an earlier estimate of $833,280 to nearly $2.4 million.
That increase puts the project $600,000 over budget and threatens to leave the renovation unfinished, said James Cowhey, executive director of Lancaster County Planning Commission.
"In my opinion, this is unacceptable," Pitts wrote Thursday in a letter to Amtrak President and CEO Joseph Boardman that was released to the media.
Pitts, who represents Lancaster County in the U.S. House of Representatives, called for a meeting in Lancaster "with all appropriate groups and organizations" within two weeks.
Casey sent a similar letter to Boardman on Tuesday.
The 81-year-old Lancaster station is owned by Amtrak. All the funding for the project has come from federal, state and county transportation funds allocated to Lancaster County.
In the contract with Amtrak, the nation's passenger rail service required that its workers be used — and Amtrak be paid — wherever possible. Amtrak crews are slated to do electrical work and painting.
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