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<p>[quote user="henry6"]</p> <p>Aside from Amtrak, Sam1, who would bid on it? From the private sector in this Country? It has been hammered into everybody's head that passenger service loses money, that freight service is the only rail commodity that makies money, that passenger service has to be handed off to public agencies so that fthe private sector doens't get burdened, etc. I guess the real quesiton is, "is there anybody, corporate or indivudually, who believes in rail passenger service a profit making business who will bid on this or any rail passenger proposition?" I doubt there are any believers in the US. If so, they would seek government subsidies anyway, so what have you achieved? [/quote]</p> <p>Private investors are sponsoring programs in Italy and Florida. In addition, Australia's Great Southern Railways'trains have been operated by a private company for several decades. And private investors are attempting to put together a proposal to offer private passenger rail services between Dallas and Houston.</p> <p>Whether the private operators will require governmental subsidies remains to be seen. The Great Southern Railway, which runs three of the country's long distance trains, gets subsidies. But they are less than what it cost the government to run the trains.</p> <p>Contracting is one of the major advantages of privatizing passenger rail. If the contractor fails to meet the required performance standards necessary to receive subsidies, the government can withhold them. Or if it awards the contract, it can rebid it. This is a powerful tool. It drives efficiencies. </p> <p>A privatized passenger rail system built on the Amtrak model or any other government model is sure to fail. If it is to succeed, it must be different. As noted in another thread, it needs to rid itself of the passenger train mind set that has been extant, and focus on innovation designed to meet today's needs. Not the needs of the 1950s! And not the needs of every provincial politician in the land.</p>
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