Titled "Report of the Railroad Professional Survey Group on Various Aspects of the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad Company's Problems Along with Conclusions and Recommendations As to Suggested Policies to be Followed or Action to be Taken Submitted by Frederic B. Whitman, President, the Western Pacific Railroad Company, San Francisco." Historian Geoffrey Doughty provided the following information to put the report into historical context: By 1961 the New Haven Railroad was relying on federal loans to remain in operation. Beset with rising expenses, limited assets, a deteriorating physical plant, declining passenger and freight revenues, lack of maintenance of equipment, a new interstate highway system parallel to the railroad’s main route, inefficient and outdated labor practices due to labor agreements, and governmental over regulation at the state and federal levels, the railroad’s problems seemed to mirror that of the rail industry as a whole. Frightened by the prospect that the New Haven might actually cease operation in such a strategic and densely populated portion of the country, Secretary of Commerce Luther Hodges contacted Frederic B. Whitman in early March 1962. Whitman, president of the Western Pacific Railroad, was advised of the Kennedy Administration’s concern about the future of the New Haven and was asked for assistance in addressing the “New Haven Railroad problem.” What Hodges wanted from Whitman was cooperation in forming a commission made up from representatives of seven railroads and Electro-Motive Division of General Motors, to survey, assess, and make recommendations as to what actions should be undertaken by the New Haven Railroad’s trustees, and on a broader scale, by the federal government. Many of the management, labor, and tax issues faced by the New Haven and described in the Whitman Report also existed at the New York Central and the Pennsylvania, but on a much larger scale. Within two years after its consolidation with Penn Central, claiming that it was unable to borrow more money from any source, like the New Haven, the colossal pile of unresolved issues led to the filing for bankruptcy on June 23, 1970. Penn Central was not alone; other Northeastern railroads were also in bankruptcy and the federal government had to step in to avoid a collapse of the network. The Whitman Commission report, composed in 1962, served as an outline for what ailed the industry and pointed to the issues that had to be addressed and resolved. The National Passenger Railroad Corporation (Railpax), later Amtrak, was formed in 1971 and the Consolidated Rail Corporation was formed in 1974 to consolidate nine of the bankrupt rail carriers in the Northeast. The still-unresolved issues continued to fester until Congress finally passed the Staggers Rail Act in 1980. The legislation provided the rail industry the flexibility it needed to meet intra and intermodal competition, resulting in greater market share.
