Passenger

schlimm:

If you want to spend an outrageous amount for every letter you send, go ahead.

I almost never mail anything anymore. Incremental cost to send an Email or pay a bill on line is zero. Why is knocking of USPS undeserved? Their costs have outstripped inflation by a decent margin in an era where theirs costs should be going down.

oltmannd:

schlimm:

If you want to spend an outrageous amount for every letter you send, go ahead.

I almost never mail anything anymore. Incremental cost to send an Email or pay a bill on line is zero. Why is knocking of USPS undeserved? Their costs have outstripped inflation by a decent margin in an era where theirs costs should be going down.

 

It just cost the taxpayers $7 Billion to bail out the Postal Workers retirement fund at the beginning of this month. I guess they think they are a bank or General Motors. Only difference is we don't stand a chance of recovering any of the $7 Billion.

Al - in - Stockton

oltmannd:

A stamp costs $0.05 in 1965. Inflated to 2009, it should cost $0.34, but it actually costs $0.44. To top it off, this is change occurred in an era where transportation costs generally declined! (in real dollars). Now, that's efficiency! I still think rail passenger projects and operations should be complete package, "reverse bid". That is, "I want you to design, build and operate this service. How much do I have to pay you right now for you to do it? You do everything including marketing and sales. You pay for the operations and you keep all the revenue."

 

 And since the year you chose, 1966, during 1979, 1982,  1983,  1986,  1989, and every year from 1991 through 2005 the USPS income was higher than their expenses.  Funny how no one else want's to deliver your aunt Martha's birthday card for even 10 times what the post office charges.  I think they are pretty well run.  One of the things driving up the price of postage at a rate faster than inflation is the skyrocketing cost of health insurance for their employees.  Just as it is driving up the cost of everything and driving jobs off shore.

passengerfan:

oltmannd:

schlimm:

If you want to spend an outrageous amount for every letter you send, go ahead.

I almost never mail anything anymore. Incremental cost to send an Email or pay a bill on line is zero. Why is knocking of USPS undeserved? Their costs have outstripped inflation by a decent margin in an era where theirs costs should be going down.

 

It just cost the taxpayers $7 Billion to bail out the Postal Workers retirement fund at the beginning of this month. I guess they think they are a bank or General Motors. Only difference is we don't stand a chance of recovering any of the $7 Billion.

Al - in - Stockton

My Dad was a retired Letter Carrier, he often noted that his pension would been much more if the government had paid the money they had agreed to pay into the pension plan over the years. Perhaps "deferring" the costs all these years finally caught up with Uncle Sam??

oltmannd:

I almost never mail anything anymore.

Don:  Nor do I or millions of others since the internet.   But you have to admit that if we "privatized" functions (Post Office) that have been thought to be a legitimate part of our government since the writhing of the Constitution, long before "socialism" we'd be paying an awful lot of money.

Good point Al-in-Stockton.   Even though the other countries heavily subsidize their passenger rail, at least they have good passenger volume and service to show for their expense, unlike Amtrak.   Take out the NE corridor plus several others and Amtrak basically looks downright anemic in its "bang for the buck".  

I don't think any state has put as much of there own money in Amtrak as California has and we do not accomplish all we possibly can. I probably won't see the CHSR in my lifetime but hopefully it does get built.

But then we have horror stories like what happened on Sunday I believe it was when passngers boarded a San Diegan that broke down and the normal 2-1/2 hour trip took 8. I would almost bet that it will be a long time before any of those passengers board another Surfliner. To watch train after train pass them by before they were finally on there way again is something I am glad I did not have to endure. Who cares its your tax dollars at work and I am sorry after stories like the Surfliner incident my tax dollars are not doing very well. I expect more of my government and so should the rest of us and if government is unable to do the job pay a private firm to take over Amtrak and subsidize a private company just like we do the Airlines and highways. I for one am tired of hearing Amtrak horror stories that should never be. Until people start complaining to there representatives and if that doesn't work vote them out then we are going to continue things just as they are. I for one have spoke to my Congressman and my Senator and will be voting to get rid of both in the next elections.

Al - in - Stockton 

passengerfan:

after stories like the Surfliner incident my tax dollars are not doing very well. I expect more of my government and so should the rest of us and if government is unable to do the job pay a private firm to take over Amtrak and subsidize a private company just like we do the Airlines and highways.

 

I wonder if that would actually help?  Given the horror stories of passengers stuck on planes stranded on the tarmac for 8 eight hours, with no air, bathrooms overflowing, etc., there is reason to think the problem lies in something far deeper in America - years of excessive self-indulgence.  Sad.

I read, recently, on www.weeklyrailrewiew.com , that Los Angeles is not renewing the operating contract with Veolia (a French outfit) and is contracting with Amtrak, again.  Also, Virginia Railway Express is not renewing Amtrak's operating contract and has voted to give it to Keolis (a French outfit).  Don't they ever learn?  Scary!  Chatsworth redux coming up in Virginia?  C'est la vie.

BNSFwatcher:

I read, recently, on www.weeklyrailrewiew.com ,

 

The link does not work.

BNSFwatcher:

Chatsworth redux coming up in Virginia? 

What was that?  seems Amtrak doesn't run trains very well.  As another poster said, maybe we should contract with another outfit (a German outfit, like DB?), to run our passenger system.

Sorry.  It's not a web-site.  Contact Dave Mears at weeklyrailreview@aol.com .  It usually comes out on Mondays and is a free newsletter.  Lots of good stuff in it.

DB running our trains?  Isn't the presence of DHS at our stations enough?  BTW, I corrected the name of "Veolia", but it didn't take.

wdh@mcn.net

BNSFwatcher:

Chatsworth redux coming up in Virginia

 

 

What happened in Chatsworth?

schlimm:

BNSFwatcher:

Chatsworth redux coming up in Virginia

 

 

What happened in Chatsworth?

This refers to Chatsworth, Cal., just above Los Angeles, where, last summer, the engineer of a suburban passenger train ran head-long into a UP freight while he apparently was sending a text message on his cell phone.

Johnny

Deggesty:

Chatsworth, Cal., just above Los Angeles, where, last summer, the engineer of a suburban passenger train ran head-long into a UP freight while he apparently was sending a text message on his cell phone.

 

 Must have been related to the Northwest Air pilots!

We don't call it Northworst Disoriented for nothing! There are two plain facts: 1) Passenger rail doesn't make economic sense except where (a) passenger density is substantial and tracks/stations reach useful destinations (e.g., NE corridor, California, Europe, perhaps a few other places E of Mississippi River) or (b) there is sufficient demand for cruise trains. 2) Trains under direct federal support need wide political presence to ensure the support of enough Congresspeople and Senators to keep the funding going (ex: Harley's Hornet, Tommy's Trolley, and many LD trains like the Sunset). Of course, these needs are incompatible, which is why debate rages here and elsewhere on the topic. My longstanding view is that interstate trains should be sponsored by groups of states along the route, with federal matching dollars available on a basis similar to the highways. Trains within a given state can be handled by the state DOT, again with a federal match. The states and groups thereof can contract whoever they want to run the trains. Maybe some Class Is would be willing to do that. The Amtrak monopoly should be quietly legislated away.