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IS AMTRAK UP TO THE CHALLENGE OF REGIONAL RAIL??

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[quote user="al-in-chgo"]  If "regional rail" is a separate and distinct category of passenger service, generally longer than commuter and shorter than Intercity, it is right for Amtrak to maintain its monopoly on operating such trains?  [/quote]It's not so much a matter of "right and wrong" as a matter of practicality. Under current federal law, only Amtrak has the legal right of access to privately owned railroad tracks at preferred rates. And the host railroads have made it very clear they want to keep it that way. Whenever the subject of competition has come up, they have all stated loud and clear that they will deal with Amtrak and only Amtrak. There are two major reasons for their position. First, they don't want to be caught in the middle of competing interests of different passenger operators. Second, they know that Amtrak's crews are highly qualfied to operate safely on their systems. There also are very few qualified passenger rail operators at this point. The Capitol Corridor Joint Powers Agency expressed concern that if Amtrak, their contract operator, was ever dissolved, they would be very hard pressed to find an alternative operator that UP would deem qualified to operate on their tracks.There is nothing to stop a competing operator from making a proposal, but there is also nothing to stop the host railroads from saying no. Competition would be nice, but in the current business and political climate, one must ask if it is doable. It is also important to remember that while there are no competing passenger operators, that does not mean Amtrak has no competition. The competition just flies planes and builds roads.
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