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Don, Are you argueing that there is plenty of demand for Amtrak and using the Texas Eagle as evidence since it is running full? I doubt there are enough riders on the Texas Eagle to make a profit even if the two sleepers are full. A while back, Alexander and I looked at some numbers and it appears that Amtrak would need something like ten full sleepers on a single run to make a profit. As I have said before, there is too little demand for Amtrak; not necessarily every run on every line, but in general not enough to support the current system. I believe this will continue to be the case until the skies fill up with so many aircraft that the only place to go is back on the ground. I am not argueing that Amtrak could never be a good thing. I am just saying the conditions don't exist today for it to work economically. It is because the air corridors are so clogged up in the NE that I think that is where Amtrak shows the most promise. This is also why I think the NEC states should be supporting the NEC portion directly without going through the Federal government. Amtrak appears to make sense given their congestion problems. In my opinion, Amtrak should operate a run in each direction from a station every day, probably more like three or four, in order to justify having the station in the first place. I hear on this site that many stations only operate for a few hours three or four days a week. That sounds like it loses money. It also sounds like it is open because there is a vote in congress tied to that station being open. Here's hoping for a brighter future - Ed
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