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My understanding is that the railroads pay taxes on every mile of Right-of-Way and extra if there is track on it. This is why the railroads have ripped up all the track they cannot justify. In response to another posting, I don't think it would be good for anyone to have the government own the Right-of-Way and lease it to the railroads. I believe it would be better to crack down on the abuses in the trucking industry. This won't do anything for the passenger rail business, but would help freight rail increase their margin. In the end, I don't think it is possible to operate a passenger rail service at a profit except in some dense urban areas without government interference. I imagine this will inspire a few challenges, but remember, without government interference I don't think Amtrak could negotiate a reasonable lease for the use of another company's rail. Incidently, acording to the engineers I have talked with Amtrak gets priority on the former RF&P route all the time. Something about the dispatchers getting fined if they allow a train to come within a half hour of an Amtrak movement. I have no way to authenticate this but the two fellows both appeared credible. Interesting thread. - Ed
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