Possible better ways of managing procurement of equipment for Amtrak

[Amtrakfflyer]

I’m just curious and this is an honest question without trying to start a ruckus. How many people at this point really think management will (and wants to) place a long distance order?

Now unfortunately we have the variable of next week’s election coming into play too. I think evrything will be ok there, but you never know.

I’ve said it before and as time goes on I think it’s more relevant. Why wasn’t the FRA given the task for the LD order as well. Congress knew (knows) Amtrak management doesn’t think highly of LD routes and gave LD route planning to the FRA. Now we find ourselves in a dire equipment shortage and management continues to keep the V1’s parked and if recent reports are to believed management plans to keep them parked.

There’s a huge disconnect the current system is about to implode and won’t be able to be run as is 3-5 years from now yet the FRA is spending millions on studying new routes.

 

[Trogdor]

I’m just curious and this is an honest question without trying to start a ruckus. How many people at this point really think management will (and wants to) place a long distance order?

I do.

I’ve said it before and as time goes on I think it’s more relevant. Why wasn’t the FRA given the task for the LD order as well.

FRA is a regulatory authority. For one reason (out of several), there would be major conflict of interest if it was responsible for procuring new equipment that it also had to certify.

 

[railiner]

FRA is a regulatory authority. For one reason (out of several), there would be major conflict of interest if it was responsible for procuring new equipment that it also had to certify.

I agree. It might be better to give that responsibility to the GSA, which specialises in procuring new equipment for various government agencies, if taking that away from Amtrak mgmt…

 

[jis]

First a caveat. At the present time it is already too late to change this procurement process that is in progress. So whatever we are discussing here can apply only to future procurement projects. At present our primary worry relative to this project is to make sure that the whole thing does not get cancelled or the can kicked down the road.

Having made that clear ....

I’m just curious and this is an honest question without trying to start a ruckus. How many people at this point really think management will (and wants to) place a long distance order?

I do. I wish they had taken an approach which minimized the time for placement of actual order and delivery. The attempt to invent new types of accommodation and rolling stock is a formula for getting everything delayed by a few years. But as they say it is what it is. The current delay is substantially due to the complexity of what is being asked for in the RFP and the price that Amtrak is willing to pay for it.

Why wasn’t the FRA given the task for the LD order as well.

And how do we know that this would accelerate anything? Afterall eventually it is the operator, i.e. Amtrak which will have to accept whatever comes out of the process.

There’s a huge disconnect the current system is about to implode and won’t be able to be run as is 3-5 years from now yet the FRA is spending millions on studying new routes.

That there is, but giving the procurement process to FRA or GSA or any other alphabet soup is not going to speed up anything. For one thing any such will take a couple of years to get set up with the technical expertise before they could meaningfully start a procurement process. Or I suppose they could simply contract the whole thing back to Amtrak, effectively just adding another layer of bureaucracy.