The Piedmont Loses Food Service

[AlanB]

Privatization of passenger rail services suffered a blow in North Carolina recently when the vendor who was supplying the food service on the Piedmont went under. The state is searching for another contractor, but until then passengers are being forced to "brown bag" it. In contrast, riders of Amtrak's Carolinian (also state supported) have food service from New York to Charlotte.

You can read the full story from Trains.com

 

[EmpireBuilderFan]

Now, let's see here...we've got politicians who want to privatize the entire passenger rail network and expect these private operators to run without government subsidies; yet a company that was handling food service on a train, which should be able to bring in pretty good profits, went belly up. Anyone else think that the politicians have the wrong idea?

 

[Bill Haithcoat]

Well, for what consolation this is, I am glad that it is not Amtrak, AS SUCH which is dropping the food service.

 

[Superliner Diner]

Privatization of passenger rail services suffered a blow in North Carolina recently when the vendor who was supplying the food service on the Piedmont went under. The state is searching for another contractor, but until then passengers are being forced to "brown bag" it. In contrast, riders of Amtrak's Carolinian (also state supported) have food service from New York to Charlotte.

You can read the full story from Trains.com

I've ridden the Piedmont. The northbound train leaves Charlotte after 5 PM and gets to Raleigh after 9 PM. If I had not eaten an early dinner in Charlotte, I'd be pretty peeved at not being able to eat. You can't ask passengers to "brown bag" it -- you're asking them to bring another item along with them, when they may already be bogged down with baggage. Would bringing their dinner violate the rule limiting passengers to two carry-on items?

The Piedmont is unique in that it uses state-owned equipment: coaches, food service car, and in the summer a dome car, rather than the Amfleet cars found on the Carolinian and other trains in the East. A shame they are not making use of that food service car.

 

[Bill Haithcoat]

I have ridden it, too, I think its equipment is from the Kansas City Southern. Yes, it does operate at prime food service time...what a shame.

 

[tp49]

I was going to say why could the State of North Carolina just find another contractor to provide food service in the interim. Then I read the article and it already stated that. It's safe to say then that the food-service situation is only temporary until a new vendor can be procured which is a lot better than food-service being cut entirely.

Usually when I ride the train I bring some food to eat just so I don't have to spend as much money on food on the train, and bringing lunch or dinner on the train in a bag does not count against your baggage allotment as it is considered "disposable."

This is true even (dare I say it) on the airlines food to be consumed on board does not count against your carry-on allotment (but that day's newspapers in a bag for reading on a plane do).

 

[tubaallen]

Would bringing their dinner violate the rule limiting passengers to two carry-on items?

Not only would it not technically violate the rule (I believe), but most of the time crew members look the other way on these types of things.

 

[battalion51]

If you look down towards the bottom of the NARP Hotline you will notice that the food loss is just temporary. Here is the link.