July 31, 2019 - TRA Opinion -
Is Amtrak management ever so slowly trying to shed itself of its national network trains that run across prairies, the piney woods of East Texas and through majestic mountains of this country by claiming that these are "money losing trains" when over $40 billion in deferred maintenance piles up in the supposedly "profitable" Northeast Corridor from Washington to Boston? However that comparison will have to wait for another day as the national network seems to be unraveling at the seams.
These questions deserve answers:
Amtrak's national fleet, outside of the NEC, is falling apart. Except for some new locomotives to come on line in the future, passenger cars have survived about 40 years of service with hundreds of thousands of mile a year piled on. A replacement fleet strategy is sorely needed and we don't see any real effort by Amtrak President Richard Anderson and his executives to put a plan on the table and get down to work.
Passenger cars that were purchased for the national trains have been "leased" to state agencies for their regional services in California, the Northwest and the Midwest, robbing the long distance trains of capacity and forcing a "downsizing" this summer during the peak season. With fewer seats to sell per long-distance train it means fares must be jacked up to make up the shortfall, or even worse with fewer seats to sell, it puts forth a premise that fewer people ride trains outside of the Northeast. Management can use those numbers to make further cuts. Is this the ultimate pursuit?
When was the last time you heard of any marketing for Amtrak's Texas Eagle, Heartland Flyer or the Sunset Limited in Texas? Marketing of these trains has been a low priority. Marketing field staff is now non-existent. If you don't let people know you have train service, how can you attract more riders?
By eliminating station agents and baggage check service in several dozen medium and smaller sized markets over the past several years, including Texarkana and Marshall Texas, it limits options for travelers in "flyover" country with downgraded or no internet connections to buy tickets online. Some seniors and those with disabilities need assistance. Does Amtrak management realize that a sizable percentage of their travelers, the Amish, that can't use a phone or internet and rely on a "live" agent to issue their ticket to travel? How are all these travelers being accommodated?
New baggage cars that were put into service have been mysteriously pulled from trains. For instance on the Texas Eagle this summer all checked baggage has to be stored in a small room on one side of a coach-baggage car. That means for the first time that there is a problem with checking bikes on the train, just when a summer surge of bicycle travelers want to ride. One rider at Little Rock, Arkansas was told this summer he couldn't have his bike checked and couldn't board the train because "there is no room for your bike." An embargo has now been placed on any express packages shipped this summer on the Texas Eagle so don't take your 10-pound package down to the station to ship out on the next train out. No bikes, no express service. Sounds like a money losing idea. Where are those new baggage cars we waited years for?
We understand that Amtrak is under a federal mandate to negate any food and beverage losses in dining car service but what they have been doing on two East Coast trains has been to pretty much only provide a cold meal box with just one microwaved alternative hot meal. While the quality of the food is OK, the presentation in a disposable box doesn't do much for the environment. It was a ill conceived idea that was rolled out too fast and Amtrak management admitted so much. Now, unless it improves, this fall it will be the norm on all trains east of the Mississippi. Coach passengers can't even buy the boxed meals, which would add to food and beverage revenue. They are relegated to the "lower class" food served in the lounge car. So the question is should you bring your own food instead?
Please prove us wrong on this assumption. Amtrak management bonuses and "atta-boys" are based on how much can be cut, cut, cut and saved down to the bottom line. Ideas to actually increase ridership and revenue can be frowned upon by upper management because the corporate culture at Amtrak is to duck your head down and just put in your time. After being the whipping boy of Congress for many years do these managers and executives know that they know have more support for expanding and improving service from both lawmakers and the public that wants them to succeed? Are managers and executives rewarded for finding innovative ideas for putting more "butts ins seats and sleepers" or just told to find out how much you can skimp and save before the travelling public cries enough is enough and doesn't come back to ride.
Amtrak executives want to add additional corridor service around the country to link key cities and that is a noble idea. But the words that are gurgling out from their headquarters on Massachusetts Avenue in Washington DC sound like some of the national trains could be snipped at points in between terminals to make the extra services happen. Executive V.P. Stephen Gardner tried to do this last year buy cutting the Southwest Chief in half and sending passengers on a bus ride through Kansas, Colorado and New Mexico for half-a-day. Fortunately, six U.S. Senators (bi-partisan) drove home the point that this would be a real bad idea to implement and Amtrak caved. Dissecting routes is not good for rural and lesser-served cities that lack adequate air or bus connections to the rest of the world and it was proven in the past to be a money losing proposition.
Amtrak should not have to choose between long-haul and short-haul service, but needs to do both, said Jim Matthews, president of the Rail Passengers Association. “I suspect that if they go to Congress with a really bold vision, they would not be forced to choose between a national network and expanded regional service,” said Matthews. “I think there’s an appetite to fund both, especially if you look at the economic payoff for doing that.”
We'd sure like to see Amtrak think and act bold for the ENTIRE country. That's why they were formed in 1971.
Is Amtrak management ever so slowly trying to shed itself of its national network trains that run across prairies, the piney woods of East Texas and through majestic mountains of this country by claiming that these are "money losing trains" when over $40 billion in deferred maintenance piles up in the supposedly "profitable" Northeast Corridor from Washington to Boston? However that comparison will have to wait for another day as the national network seems to be unraveling at the seams.
These questions deserve answers:
Amtrak's national fleet, outside of the NEC, is falling apart. Except for some new locomotives to come on line in the future, passenger cars have survived about 40 years of service with hundreds of thousands of mile a year piled on. A replacement fleet strategy is sorely needed and we don't see any real effort by Amtrak President Richard Anderson and his executives to put a plan on the table and get down to work.
Passenger cars that were purchased for the national trains have been "leased" to state agencies for their regional services in California, the Northwest and the Midwest, robbing the long distance trains of capacity and forcing a "downsizing" this summer during the peak season. With fewer seats to sell per long-distance train it means fares must be jacked up to make up the shortfall, or even worse with fewer seats to sell, it puts forth a premise that fewer people ride trains outside of the Northeast. Management can use those numbers to make further cuts. Is this the ultimate pursuit?
When was the last time you heard of any marketing for Amtrak's Texas Eagle, Heartland Flyer or the Sunset Limited in Texas? Marketing of these trains has been a low priority. Marketing field staff is now non-existent. If you don't let people know you have train service, how can you attract more riders?
By eliminating station agents and baggage check service in several dozen medium and smaller sized markets over the past several years, including Texarkana and Marshall Texas, it limits options for travelers in "flyover" country with downgraded or no internet connections to buy tickets online. Some seniors and those with disabilities need assistance. Does Amtrak management realize that a sizable percentage of their travelers, the Amish, that can't use a phone or internet and rely on a "live" agent to issue their ticket to travel? How are all these travelers being accommodated?
New baggage cars that were put into service have been mysteriously pulled from trains. For instance on the Texas Eagle this summer all checked baggage has to be stored in a small room on one side of a coach-baggage car. That means for the first time that there is a problem with checking bikes on the train, just when a summer surge of bicycle travelers want to ride. One rider at Little Rock, Arkansas was told this summer he couldn't have his bike checked and couldn't board the train because "there is no room for your bike." An embargo has now been placed on any express packages shipped this summer on the Texas Eagle so don't take your 10-pound package down to the station to ship out on the next train out. No bikes, no express service. Sounds like a money losing idea. Where are those new baggage cars we waited years for?
We understand that Amtrak is under a federal mandate to negate any food and beverage losses in dining car service but what they have been doing on two East Coast trains has been to pretty much only provide a cold meal box with just one microwaved alternative hot meal. While the quality of the food is OK, the presentation in a disposable box doesn't do much for the environment. It was a ill conceived idea that was rolled out too fast and Amtrak management admitted so much. Now, unless it improves, this fall it will be the norm on all trains east of the Mississippi. Coach passengers can't even buy the boxed meals, which would add to food and beverage revenue. They are relegated to the "lower class" food served in the lounge car. So the question is should you bring your own food instead?
Please prove us wrong on this assumption. Amtrak management bonuses and "atta-boys" are based on how much can be cut, cut, cut and saved down to the bottom line. Ideas to actually increase ridership and revenue can be frowned upon by upper management because the corporate culture at Amtrak is to duck your head down and just put in your time. After being the whipping boy of Congress for many years do these managers and executives know that they know have more support for expanding and improving service from both lawmakers and the public that wants them to succeed? Are managers and executives rewarded for finding innovative ideas for putting more "butts ins seats and sleepers" or just told to find out how much you can skimp and save before the travelling public cries enough is enough and doesn't come back to ride.
Amtrak executives want to add additional corridor service around the country to link key cities and that is a noble idea. But the words that are gurgling out from their headquarters on Massachusetts Avenue in Washington DC sound like some of the national trains could be snipped at points in between terminals to make the extra services happen. Executive V.P. Stephen Gardner tried to do this last year buy cutting the Southwest Chief in half and sending passengers on a bus ride through Kansas, Colorado and New Mexico for half-a-day. Fortunately, six U.S. Senators (bi-partisan) drove home the point that this would be a real bad idea to implement and Amtrak caved. Dissecting routes is not good for rural and lesser-served cities that lack adequate air or bus connections to the rest of the world and it was proven in the past to be a money losing proposition.
Amtrak should not have to choose between long-haul and short-haul service, but needs to do both, said Jim Matthews, president of the Rail Passengers Association. “I suspect that if they go to Congress with a really bold vision, they would not be forced to choose between a national network and expanded regional service,” said Matthews. “I think there’s an appetite to fund both, especially if you look at the economic payoff for doing that.”
We'd sure like to see Amtrak think and act bold for the ENTIRE country. That's why they were formed in 1971.