Well the item I saw of interest was the percent of labor cost per food item sold and the fact that Amtrak has to have it's own commissaries. 12 of them in operation. Really? Nobody thinks this is wasteful? Whats the difference in food freshness if the food is assembled at an existing airport commisary vs a Amtrak commissary? Why on earth are 12 Commissaries being kept open when they basically duplicate airport commissaries in the same city.
Other then the above item, I would look at how much food is not sold on a Amtrak run and is thrown out due to expiration date issues, that would be another area of concern which I think the House is probably going to skip past looking at.
I for one do not think the "it's always worked that way in the past" is an acceptable excuse. Private Passenger Rail was never efficient at running a food service operation.
PNWRMNM The most interesting thing I saw is that ATK has been breaking the law for about 30 years. The quickest way to get a stupid law changed is to obey it to the letter. Pull off the diners, lounges, and snack cars. Mac McCulloch
The most interesting thing I saw is that ATK has been breaking the law for about 30 years. The quickest way to get a stupid law changed is to obey it to the letter. Pull off the diners, lounges, and snack cars.
Mac McCulloch
I get your point, but am afraid this would just play into the hands of the Amtrak haters, hurting ridership and driving the operating deficits even higher, thus excusing killing Amtrak altogether outside of the NEC.
It's a constant battle --with Democrats, not just Republicans; an Amtrak on-train rep pointed out to me that the worst train-offs were during the administrations of Carter and Clinton -- but I suspect Amtrak will win this one too.
It is a great example of a kangaroo court, a fishing expidition, a waste of time, a hand at partisan politics, a return for a payoff from (fill in the blank...or blanks, many blanks), and why a politician can't be a businessman and a businessman can't be a politician.
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oltmannd dakotafred: The subtitle of the hearing, "Mismanagement of Food & Beverage Services," suggests a kangaroo court. Everybody knows there will be some employee theft, as there is in the food-service industry as a whole, as the agenda acknowledges. If Chairman Mica's committee can figure out how to eliminate or significantly reduce that, it would be public-spirited of the committee to share its findings with the industry. Otherwise, the quarrel seems to be with Amtrak losing money on the services, as the private rails did before them and as the airlines used to (before virtually discontinuing them). This calls for a hearing? Congress has bigger holes in its pocket than food and beverage services on Amtrak. You didn't read it, did you...
dakotafred: The subtitle of the hearing, "Mismanagement of Food & Beverage Services," suggests a kangaroo court. Everybody knows there will be some employee theft, as there is in the food-service industry as a whole, as the agenda acknowledges. If Chairman Mica's committee can figure out how to eliminate or significantly reduce that, it would be public-spirited of the committee to share its findings with the industry. Otherwise, the quarrel seems to be with Amtrak losing money on the services, as the private rails did before them and as the airlines used to (before virtually discontinuing them). This calls for a hearing? Congress has bigger holes in its pocket than food and beverage services on Amtrak.
The subtitle of the hearing, "Mismanagement of Food & Beverage Services," suggests a kangaroo court.
Everybody knows there will be some employee theft, as there is in the food-service industry as a whole, as the agenda acknowledges. If Chairman Mica's committee can figure out how to eliminate or significantly reduce that, it would be public-spirited of the committee to share its findings with the industry.
Otherwise, the quarrel seems to be with Amtrak losing money on the services, as the private rails did before them and as the airlines used to (before virtually discontinuing them). This calls for a hearing? Congress has bigger holes in its pocket than food and beverage services on Amtrak.
You didn't read it, did you...
As best I could with my eyes glazed over. What do you think I missed?
dakotafred The subtitle of the hearing, "Mismanagement of Food & Beverage Services," suggests a kangaroo court. Everybody knows there will be some employee theft, as there is in the food-service industry as a whole, as the agenda acknowledges. If Chairman Mica's committee can figure out how to eliminate or significantly reduce that, it would be public-spirited of the committee to share its findings with the industry. Otherwise, the quarrel seems to be with Amtrak losing money on the services, as the private rails did before them and as the airlines used to (before virtually discontinuing them). This calls for a hearing? Congress has bigger holes in its pocket than food and beverage services on Amtrak.
-Don (Random stuff, mostly about trains - what else? http://blerfblog.blogspot.com/)
Interesting reading:
http://republicans.transportation.house.gov/Media/file/112th/Full%20Committee%20Briefing%20Memo%20%208-2-12.pdf
Of course it serves a political agenda, but there are some interesting facts.
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