Richard Anderson quote 11/5

[Thirdrail7]

A passenger not eating does not cut the revenue AMTRAK receives but actually lowers food costs and improves the bottom line.

I wouldn't go that far. A passenger eating the food means that it doesn't go to waste and is replenished since it was sold. If the food is already on the train, it has already been purchased by Amtrak. Not selling it doesn't mean there is a refund and a lot of it eventually expires.

That's waste and I don't see how that could improve the bottom line.

 

[jis]

Just as a lark I checked with folks that I know in the management ranks of Indian Railways on how they price tickets that include complementary food in the fare.

What they do is first publish the retail price of the meals, and then simply add those onto the fare. That portion of the fare goes to the F&B account irrespective of whether the food is actually consumed or not, since they do not do any paperwork at the time the food is delivered. If Amtrak were to publish a standard price of all Flex Dining Meals and used that for transfer to F&B this would be similar to what IR does.

One of the implications is that irrespective of which selection is taken from the four or five choices, the retail price used is the same, so it is unlikely that there will be that 5 star Filet or Indian equivalent of it in the meal. OTOH, the amount a quality of food is pretty standard across the board. There are the usual hiccups with some Contractors who do a poor job of execution of the contract while other exceed expectations. Contractors are known to occasionally get fired too. So there is a relatively open market for providing contract food service.

Of course if one wants to get more fancy menu price variations are easy to incorporate provided menu choices are made as a modification of the reservation that is paid for when any change is made or the original reservation is ticketed. But that is not the case at present.

Currently, the only variation one appears to have is to simply decline the food package and make ones own arrangements. One of the possibilities available is to make arrangements with mobile services that deliver food on the trains and make ones on choice from their much wider set of selections and pay directly to them. Usually such arrangements are made through a Smartphone App. The train standard service providers know who have declined service in the roster and deliver food accordingly or not. This is a very recent change.

 

[me_little_me]

You know?
These allocation rules are crafted through some mysterious process involving Amtrak, FRA and the Volpe Center. /QUOTE]
The Tri-Lateral Commission

 

[Amtrakfflyer]

Jim Matthews brought up a lot of points in dining before the committee Wednesday including table clothes and other less than salient issues he did not however demand or ask that the food mandate be reversed. This audience while they may or may not have direct control of the mandate at this time will soon enough.

 

[jis]

And you actually believe that RPA gets to talk to the Committee members and staff only during these occasional hearings? I did not realize the level of lack of knowledge about what meetings go on on a pretty regular basis. Actually it is Sean, the guy in charge of Capitol Hill matters, who participates in regular meetings with Committee staff. Jim joins occasionally. They also have regular meetings with Amtrak management. The actual words that go in the bill are crafted by the Committee staff.

 

[Amtrakfflyer]

Something that important should have been put in the on the record during the hearing. I realize it’s a fluid issue and meetings/calls take place daily. It’s the root cause of the dining debacle and it needs to be drilled home at every pertinent opportunity.

 

[jis]

Something that important should have been put in the on the record during the hearing. I realize it’s a fluid issue and meetings/calls take place daily. It’s the root cause of the dining debacle and it needs to be drilled home at every pertinent opportunity.

I don’t think there is anyone that does not know it. They just do not consider it to be important enough to get worked up over it. But I will let Jim know that some feel he is a totally incompetent for not having mentioned it at that specific hearing. [emoji57]

 

[chrsjrcj]

I think Jim was okay during Wednesday's hearing, but I was most encouraged by the testimony of the Union bosses and the questioning by the Congress people. It's clear that our concerns are being heard by Congress, even beyond the quality of food service. It's hard not to believe that RPA played a roll in that, considering they were the only advocacy group present at the hearing.

 

[chrsjrcj]

Also, during Wednesday's hearing, one Representative (I don't remember who) said he wants to remove the food mandate from PRIIA.

 

[Palmetto]

I think it was DeFazio.