Recent content by jimdex

With so many heavy rail operations automated these days -- and indeed, with the technology for self-driving cars and trucks becoming increasingly sophisticated -- why can't transit systems take the train operator out of the cab and turn him into a conductor who continually walks the train? That...

I've always wondered about that myself. It may have something to do with the fact that Atlanta-New Orleans is basically a single-track railroad, but then again, there are a lot of Amtrak segments like that.

Because of an annual track work project, Amtrak has to curtail service on the Atlanta-New Orleans leg of the Crescent for several weeks every winter.

Yes, but Amtrak requests similar grants for the Northeast Corridor every year (I believe it's asking for $1.5 billion for fiscal 2025.) If capital costs exceed operating profits every year, that's a net loss.

I don't really see how that could work, unless you're charging substantially higher per-mile fares for shorter trips. Let's consider a hypothetical train route running from Point "A" to Point "D." If a non-stop train leaves Point A" 100% full, it will be 100% full for its entire trip. But if a...

I may be missing something, if but Amtrak had to spend $2 billion on capital improvements on the NEC, and it only made a $235 million in operating profits, that would strike me as a $1.7 billion loss.

I big part of this is the fact that as a non-stop train, an Autotrain trip can be 100% sold out, from departure to arrival. Conventional long-distance trains are always going to have some empty seats, as people get on and off at stations along the route.

My understanding is that state subsidies are listed as revenue for the subsidized route.

I don't want to minimize the importance of the NEC, but it only makes a profit if you exclude the annual capital expenses. Most LD trains run on freight railroad tracks, so there's a different accounting method: many of the ongoing capital expenses that benefit LD routes are financed by the...

Well, yes they do, at least on occasion. About five years ago, I was boarding the northbound Crescent at Atlanta. Back then, it was scheduled to leave Atlanta at about 8 pm, and it served dinner to Atlanta passengers shortly after departure. When it became clear that the Crescent was running...

This is already a consideration for sleeping car passengers when the train runs late. When that happens to them, they get refunds to cover the cost of dinner. I suspect that could work for coach passengers too. (Personally, I would prefer returning to the old system of just having everyone who...

A truly coordinated bus and train system would establish a true national ground transportation network to offer an alternative to driving or flying.

That's not the reason for the new train. The main reason for the change is either (according to Amtrak) reducing congestion in the East River tunnels or (according to other reports), freeing up more Superliner equipment for Western trains. Whichever, the Chicago-Florda thru service is merely a...

You appear to be right, but when I tried to use that function just now, it didn't work. I would also note that it requires you to put in a date --or a range of dates -- for travel, which is sensible, I suppose. But perhaps a bit off-putting to a potential customer who is just trying to get a...

I can understand that printed timetables may not be cost-effective for Amtrak. But I think the absence of PDF timetables on Amtrak's website may contribute to a lot of confusion for potential customers. As it is, the only way to see if you get from Point A to Point B conveniently is to start a...