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Amtrak's FY 2008 Key Performance Numbers

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[quote user="CG9602"]I also appreciate the numbers being presented here. I shall point out that comparing Amtrak's Sunset Limited to a point-to-point, two stop aircraft service is the proverbial Apples-to-oranges comparison, in that the air service does not make over two dozen stops on each and every trip as it goes across country. The airplane makes only two stops - one at each end of the route. The numbers are unfavorable as well because of the less than once per day service of certain routes, and the once per day service of other routes. The numbers how that multiple departures per day, while costly, are the way to go towards profitability. Why does the NEC show profit ? In part because there are multiple departures along the Corridor each direction every day. Same with the State supported trains. What Sam's numbers seem to be saying is that the "profits," if there are any to be found, are in the short haul trains. And this seems to contradict the conventional wisdom that the profits are in the long hauls. I also question some of the numbers because it stands to reason that the short distance trains would have a higher capital cost related to operating cost, and it would be more expensive on a per train basis to have only short distance trains serving some geographically limited markets.[/quote]   It would be less expensive to fly people coach class between practically any paired cities along the Sunset route.  The only exception would be between one or two paired communities served by commuter air only.  I showed the business class fare between LA and NO, as an example, to demonstrate the economic dysfunction of the Sunset Limited.  Needless to say, the gap would be even wider if I had used the cost of a coach seat to make the comparison. Last year I ran three scenarios regarding the allocation of interest, depreciation, and other charges to the long distance trains vs. the short haul trains.  The scenarios assumed that 5, 10, and 15 per cent of these items were assigned to the long distance trains.  No matter how I sliced and diced the numbers, the long haul trains cost more per passenger and seat mile than the short haul trains.  This is true even in the case of the NEC, with its large capital investment, although the cost per passenger mile is much narrower than for other corridors.  However, if one considers that the long haul trains don't pay the full cost of moving them over the hoist railroads, the cost per passenger mile widens.   Amtrak has been trying to fix the long haul passenger train since 1971.  It has failed.  And it will continue to fail because they long ago outlived their usefulness.  They should be retired, and the resources should be used to enhance existing short haul corridors or establish new ones.
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