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Amtrak's FY 2008 Key Performance Numbers

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[quote user="oltmannd"] [quote user="beaulieu"] Second I have serious trouble with the way that Amtrak treats its costs and the way that you characterize them with regard especially to the NEC All of the costs such as replacing Ties, Ballast, Rail, and various components of the electrical system, are avoidable if Amtrak stopped running trains over the Corridor, yet Amtrak's costs charged by the freight railroads for their track maintenance are in the avoidable category as Access Fees. [/quote] I'm not so sure that NEC costs are avoidable even if Amtrak quit running trains.  They are obligated to provide trackage for freight and commuter operations just as the frt RRs are obligated to host Amtrak trains on existing routes.  BTW, the Access Fees don't cover the host RRs costs. So the true economic picture for the LD trains is even worse than it appears from Amtrak's data if you factor in the hidden host RR subisdy.  [/quote]   All the costs that are driven (linked to) by Amtrak's major activity, which is running passenger trains, are avoidable.  That is to say, they would eventually go away if Amtrak stopped running the trains. Infrastructure costs associated with the NEC would only be avoidable if Amtrak went out of business and liquidated all of its assets.  Given its obligation to hoist other trains on the NEC, as stated above, it would probably not be able to liquate the asset, although it could sell it to another party.  However, if Amtrak stopped hoisting passenger trains on the NEC, it could probably reduce the fix costs associated with the NEC.  Under the going concern concept, terminating a segment of the business, e.g. passenger trains on the NEC, does not assume liquidation of the business (Amtrak).  It only assumes the cessation of a segment of the business.  Such a cessation entails some tricky accounting, but it happens all the time. Although accountants talk about variable costs, avoidable costs, fixed costs, etc., in the long run all costs are variable.
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