Richard Anderson replacing Wick Moorman as Amtrak CEO

[Ryan]

I still don’t know the ins and out of links and postings here.

Anyways I just “bing’d”, “Amtrak airline seating” and a bunch of articles popped up circa July 2017 right when Anderson joined Moorman. Got Schumer all riled up.

You mean like this one:
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-...gn=Feed:+reuters/businessNews+(Business+News)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Outgoing Amtrak Co-chief Executive Wick Moorman said on Wednesday the money-losing U.S. passenger rail system is considering a less comfortable economy class of seats that could allow it to pack in more passengers.

“We are looking at doing some creative things in terms of creating an economy class,” Moorman said at the National Press Club talk in Washington.

A) Not Anderson.
B) Not “converting”, but the addition of a new lower tier of service. Theoretically it would have competed with the economy busses, something many have advocated for.
C) “Considering”, not “would be”.

It seems the original claim of “would be converted to standard ‘airline’ type seating” seems to be inaccurate.

 

[Ryan]

Rebuilding damaged equipment would be drastically cheaper then a new order

Does the phrase “beyond economical repair” mean anything to you?

 

[Amtrakfflyer]

You don’t have to be rude. A lot or at least some of the equipment is superficial. Also the gutted shells that were going to be lounges are basically blank slates. Maybe use them as “sleeper lounges” that are actually lounges not diners that they don’t know what to do with. The office car Boardman used often was remodeled recently as well.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

All things considered, I'm in the C+ range...What do you think?

Around 99% of my Amtrak travel is on Western long distance routes. In that sense Anderson's performance has ranged from indifferent to threatening. In my personal experience the product and services I purchase from Amtrak have never been lower quality or higher priced. Delays and other complications have increased as well. I cannot think of one single improvement to my experience in the last two years, let alone anything I can trace to something Anderson has said or done on my behalf. All the top highlights from the last couple years involve someone else actively preventing Anderson from following through on a threat to reduce or abandon service.

I see no reason to give Anderson anything more than a Failing grade.

 

[jis]

I must have missed that. Have a link?

I think he is confusing the study that was initiated in Boardman's/Moorman's time to explore the possibility of reducing seat pitch in Coaches by a few inches to allow an additional row or two of seats. The idea was shelved, but as it is fashionable to blame Anderson for everything these days, somehow it got conflated into something that Anderson did.

Mind you, I am not condoning any of the negative things that Anderson has done. But there are a lot of negative things that have been done by those that preceded Anderson too.

 

[Anderson]

There was also a discussion back in the PIPs a few years ago of cutting seat pitch in the LD Superliner coaches. Ironically, that was actually intended to improve the passenger experience and was based on customer complaints...the seats are so far apart that using the tray of the seat in front of you can be less-than-ideal, especially if you're trying to get some work done/watch a movie. Mind you, this was a case of cutting something like four inches back and getting an extra row or two of seats out of the deal...this was also in the context of the massive run-up in LD ridership from 2003-13 and the prospect of no new equipment.

I'll also say that I think there is a (painfully solid) case to be made for Amtrak working with Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey (and possibly Virginia as well) to run a set of through commuter-ish trains from WAS-NYP. In such a case you'd be looking at the objective being both serving a whole slew of intermediate markets (these trains would be making a lot of the stops and probably take another 45-60 minutes above your standard Regional), but you would probably be able to run a crew from one end to the other and back on a legal shift (presuming a 4:30 run each way, if you turn the train in 60 minutes you'd have two hours of slack for the twelve hour limit). Pricing-wise, a "regular" fare in the $35-55 range would seem to make the most sense as that would be in line with prevailing commuter fares*. Sitting down around $40 for the total fare would probably involve reducing down a few of the "base fares" for through passengers (e.g. SEPTA nominally charges $12 for a Zone 1-to-Zone 1 ticket passing through the City Center stations, but a "passing through" fare is only $9.25...apparently even including to/from New Jersey), while a higher fare would probably also be adding a few dollars to account for the Perryville-Newark, DE gap not being in the mix below.

*Commuter fares for each segment of the run are as follows:

DC-Perryville:  $12.00          MARC
Newark, DE-PHL: $8.00   $20.00  SEPTA
PHL-TRE:        $10.00  $30.00  SEPTA
Trenton-NYP:    $16.75  $46.75  NJT
===== ===== OR ===== =====
DC-Perryville:  $12.00          MARC
Newark, DE-TRE: $9.25   $21.25  SEPTA
Trenton-NYP:    $16.75  $38.00  NJT

 

[bretton88]

There was also a discussion back in the PIPs a few years ago of cutting seat pitch in the LD Superliner coaches. Ironically, that was actually intended to improve the passenger experience and was based on customer complaints...the seats are so far apart that using the tray of the seat in front of you can be less-than-ideal, especially if you're trying to get some work done/watch a movie. Mind you, this was a case of cutting something like four inches back and getting an extra row or two of seats out of the deal...this was also in the context of the massive run-up in LD ridership from 2003-13 and the prospect of no new equipment.

I'll also say that I think there is a (painfully solid) case to be made for Amtrak working with Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey (and possibly Virginia as well) to run a set of through commuter-ish trains from WAS-NYP. In such a case you'd be looking at the objective being both serving a whole slew of intermediate markets (these trains would be making a lot of the stops and probably take another 45-60 minutes above your standard Regional), but you would probably be able to run a crew from one end to the other and back on a legal shift (presuming a 4:30 run each way, if you turn the train in 60 minutes you'd have two hours of slack for the twelve hour limit). Pricing-wise, a "regular" fare in the $35-55 range would seem to make the most sense as that would be in line with prevailing commuter fares*. Sitting down around $40 for the total fare would probably involve reducing down a few of the "base fares" for through passengers (e.g. SEPTA nominally charges $12 for a Zone 1-to-Zone 1 ticket passing through the City Center stations, but a "passing through" fare is only $9.25...apparently even including to/from New Jersey), while a higher fare would probably also be adding a few dollars to account for the Perryville-Newark, DE gap not being in the mix below.

*Commuter fares for each segment of the run are as follows:

DC-Perryville:  $12.00          MARC
Newark, DE-PHL: $8.00   $20.00  SEPTA
PHL-TRE:        $10.00  $30.00  SEPTA
Trenton-NYP:    $16.75  $46.75  NJT
===== ===== OR ===== =====
DC-Perryville:  $12.00          MARC
Newark, DE-TRE: $9.25   $21.25  SEPTA
Trenton-NYP:    $16.75  $38.00  NJT

In theory this is possible to do right now, Amtrak could run it and lease the equipment from the commuter agencies. The reality is that the commuter agencies also have no spare equipment (minus a few special holiday things when they're running low schedules anyways), and the infrastructure is jammed.

 

[Anderson]

True, though to be fair ordering a couple of rakes of coaches and negotiating with NJT to adjust a few NEC slots around (I think you mostly have capacity elsewhere, but the Hudson tunnels are yet again at issue) wouldn't be absurd.

 

[Thirdrail7]

B) Not “converting”, but the addition of a new lower tier of service. Theoretically it would have competed with the economy busses, something many have advocated for.
C) “Considering”, not “would be”.

It seems the original claim of “would be converted to standard ‘airline’ type seating” seems to be inaccurate.

To be fair, this wasn't going to be an additional order of equipment. This was going to be a conversion of the old equipment during the overhaul/refresh. The goal was to reduce the amount of bathrooms and put in high capacity seating in a certain amount of coaches.

The cost and the life span analysis of the Amfleets (along with hounding by the FRA) made them skip it since they plan to retire them once new equipment arrives. 91's collision definitely didn't help the Amfleets.

 

[Ryan]

To be fair, this wasn't going to be an additional order of equipment. This was going to be a conversion of the old equipment during the overhaul/refresh.

Well yes, but it wasn't going to be all of the equipment. If you wanted to keep paying for and sitting in the current coach seating, that would still be an option. There would just be a cheaper option for the budget inclined.

As you mentioned, it's all irrelevant now, but the original claim wasn't a valid basis for holding against Anderson.

 

[Thirdrail7]

We're not at the 2-year mark so I won't ask for an evaluation until next month. However, this tidbit from the thread is concerning:

From the article above (post #38):
"The two spoke over each other, with Anderson at one point asking, “are you going to let me finish?” and Lynch replying, “I’m not sure.” Anderson pushed the microphone away, checking his watch and phone in reply."

No matter how heated an argument gets, to check your watch and phone during it is the height of crass and impolite tastelessness--it implies that those two things are more important than the other person, and that the other person might as well not even be there. Doesn't Anderson have any sense of decorum at all? Or is he simply completely socially inept? (I could accept the social awkwardness of the second--many people are shy, after all--much more than the rudeness of the first.)

He often acts like an entitled brat. This is not the first time, so it is probably reasonable to surmise that that is his style and not just a one off huff.

This is a problem that could have long-lasting consequences. Amtrakfflyer even mentioned earlier in this thread:

“F” for not knowing who his bosses are (Congress and in turn taxpayers in all 50 states). I get your points on mechanical and operations.

His big disconnect is trying to run Amtrak like he ran Delta or NW. It’s not his way or the highway anymore. Amtrak is a company that operates for the public good, no matter what its charter may say Congress has made this abundantly clear to him.

There is a difference between working with a Board of Directors and Congress and they can write things into the authorization that will impact the operation for years to come.
Pouting, foot-stomping, and moping isn't going to cut it. You have to work with people and make your ideas look like theirs.

Amtrak CEO: Where you only think you're in charge.

 

[user 14106]

There was another moment where he barked "You just don't agree!" at one of the congressman in a very snotty tone. Hopefully some of the re authorization proceedings will play out in public hearings it could be some good TV.

 

[chrsjrcj]

Wednesday's hearing was the first time I watched Anderson testify in front of Congress, and I was stunned by his behavior. I'm sure he thinks Amtrak's fiscal performance speaks for itself and believes that it gives him leeway to run Amtrak the way he wants to, but it's hard for me to believe that someone so combative towards Congress will be successful in getting what they want, with the pushback coming from both employees and the public and outright distrust from one Representative.

 

[Rover]

Under Richard Anderson:

"Amtrak is ready when you are!".... As long as there's no snow in the forecast!

My attempt at being cynical.

 

[jis]

There was another moment where he barked "You just don't agree!" at one of the congressman in a very snotty tone. Hopefully some of the re authorization proceedings will play out in public hearings it could be some good TV.

I think the Popcorn and Beer industry will make out like bandits.

 

[neroden]

I don't think Anderson will be in his job long. He keeps being rude and arrogant towards his bosses in Congress. Combine this with making dumb decisions based on believing phony accounting, which makes him look like an idiot, and being unable to understand anything about the political mood... I think he's a goner. If he had had more humility and more skepticism he would have done better.

 

[Hans627]

I don't think Anderson will be in his job long. He keeps being rude and arrogant towards his bosses in Congress. Combine this with making dumb decisions based on believing phony accounting, which makes him look like an idiot, and being unable to understand anything about the political mood... I think he's a goner. If he had had more humility and more skepticism he would have done better.

I don't know how long he will last as head of Amtrak but after listening to the entire 2 hour plus testimony in front of congress I was impressed by his use of data to support his decisions. I personally don't like some of those decisions but he is, after all, trying to follow government mandated regulations.

 

[jis]

The problem with his data though is that quite a bit of his data has no known provenance, and some of the rest is known to be faulty. The reference statistics quoted are not from any controlled experiment but from uncontrolled surveys that are subject to all kinds of distortions, for example. So a lot of the decision making is somewhat GIGO (Garbage In Garbage Out)

 

[Amtrakfflyer]

The problem is a lot of Anderson’s data is bogus. Whether or not he is aware of it is the true question.

After talking to a few stakeholders involved in the recent SWC negotiations my feeling is Anderson has no issue being deceitful if it helps his agenda. He also doesn’t understand Amtrak’s mission or it’s financials as well as he should.

 

[MARC Rider]

I don't think Anderson will be in his job long. He keeps being rude and arrogant towards his bosses in Congress. Combine this with making dumb decisions based on believing phony accounting, which makes him look like an idiot, and being unable to understand anything about the political mood... I think he's a goner. If he had had more humility and more skepticism he would have done better.

Are his real bosses the members of Congress? I would think that his immediate boss is the Board of Directors. Maybe He's not as rude to them. However, I agree that if he remains rude to the the Members of Congress, they may constrain his actions through the appropriations process.

Of course, the politics of that are pretty hazy to me. First there's the partisan gridlock, then the fact that the Amtrak appropriation isn't exactly one of the larger bones of contention in the appropriation struggle. It seems that Amtrak supporters in Congress are a combination of Members from states with corridor service and Members from rural states that have Long Distance service. It does seem that during the last several years that even though the Amtrak haters try to severely cut or even zero out the appropriation, in the end, it remains more or less the same. And the law seems to be be that whatever Mr. Anderson's opinion, Amtrak is tasked with providing both corridor and log distance service. So if Mr. Anderson is really Dr. Evil who wants to end Long Distance trains, he will need to persuade Congress to change the law.

 

[jis]

I don't believe that Appropriations process will prove to be a big problem because there is bipartisan agreement these days on about $2 billion per year for Amtrak.

The real jeopardy is in the Authorization process which is free to define or redefine Amtrak's mission whichever way they like. Many keep talking about Amtrak's mission without necessarily having looked at how its mission is defined in the relevant CFR. Often there is considerable daylight between what an individual claims Amtrak's mission is and what the vague statement in the CFR says and how it can be interpreted seven ways to Sunday.

Advocates need to pay special attention to the new Appropriation Bill that has to pass by early 2020, or they have to figure out a one year CR to postpone it to after the election. This bill could rewrite the mission to match Anderson's vision surreptitiously unless one is careful.

 

[chrsjrcj]

In regards to Anderson's data - "Lies, damned lies, and statistics."

 

[Hans627]

Speaking of Anderson, Jim Mathews, president of the Rail Passengers Association, a national advocacy organization for train travelers, sees an irony. “He was brought in to make Amtrak operate as if it were a profit-making company,” Mathews says. “He looked everybody in the eye and said, ‘OK, are you guys ready for this? We’re going to break some stuff.’ And everyone said, ‘Yes, this is what we want.’ And then he started breaking stuff. And people were like, ‘Wait, hold up. Stop! What?’ ”

 

[neroden]

The problem is a lot of Anderson’s data is bogus. Whether or not he is aware of it is the true question.

I've been inclined to believe that Mr. Anderson isn't aware that his data is bogus.

I think feeding Mr. Anderson bogus data suits Mr. Gardner's personal and oft-stated vision of destroying the profitable long-distance trains so he can spend all his time thinking about "corridors".

It's just a hypothesis, but it fits. I don't think Mr. Anderson has a hate on for the LD trains; I think Mr. Gardner does.

Moorman and Boardman knew better, so Gardner couldn't defraud them. Anderson comes from airlines, doesn't know better, and is a perfect target to be defrauded. And Gardner's fingerprints are all over all the really stupid stuff.

For years. When Boardman sort of "checked out" and stopped paying attention to Amtrak a few years before he quit, suddenly weird stuff started happening; the Congressionally mandated Performance Improvement Plans were suddenly tossed in the garbage bin by *someone* (prior to that, there had been some effort to implement thim). Gardner was in a position to do that.

He also doesn’t understand Amtrak’s mission or it’s financials as well as he should.

Mr. Anderson sure doesn't understand its financials.

There are things he's done which are fine, like a much more serious emphasis on a safety culture, or reducing the number of call centers Amtrak has.

Then there's the stupid stuff which will only reduce ridership, reduce revenue, and increase the need for Congressional subsidy... which is all based on the blatantly bogus "data". I think it's being fed to him by someone, and based on public statements, I think that someone may be Stephen Gardner.

----
Furthermore, apparently Gardner thought he was the "heir apparent" at Amtrak before Anderson was hired. Gardner has a personal reason to want to embarass Anderson, stick Anderson with the blame for every dirty trick Gardner wants to pull, and get Anderson forced out by Congress, as long as he doesn't get forced out at the same time. It's probably important for advocates to shine the spotlight on Gardner's malfeasance.

 

[Rodd]

What do you think of his decisions so far? I take the train almost daily all over and have heard feedback from many long time Amtrak Employees.....I am hoping to get better insight from my fellow regular Amtrak travelers to see if the transition from CEO of an airline to CEO of our real only true national rail option here in the US is making sense.

MODERATOR NOTE: This thread (in Amtrak Future forum) was merged with an existing thread regarding the "new" CEO.