Sir Ray wrote:dlagrua wrote:Restoring Cape May service all comes down to money that the CMSL doesn't have. If funds were available NJT or an outfit like RJ Corman could repair over 1 mile of track per day and get the line running in no time. Without money i see no solution anytime soon. Time for a museum or freight line to step in get delivering to the industries with sidings again and take control.
Wait a minute, about a year ago in this very thread (page 37) you yourself posted this
Going back years ago there was freight business on the CMSL route but AFAIK all of them have closed. The largest customer was the Harbeson Walker Magnesite plant at Cape May point. When they closed in the early 80's, the huge facility was bulldozed, the branch line that served them was abandoned and there is nothing along the 2 or 3 miles of tracks that remain. There was also a large lumber yard that was a freight customer. I believe the name was Tri-County building supply in Cape May Courthouse. They may still be there. There was also talk of building a large propane storage facility at Woodbine and the tracks to that city on the Northern end of the line were refurbished but nothing resulted. Point is that today the opportunity to make CMSL a freight line are very limited. Even if they could find customers, the track along most of the line may not support it.
So you in the past acknowledged there are no real freight customers on this line. I believe the big freight customer was supposed to be Modern Gas (the storage facility in Woodbine you mention), but this Satellite view shows the sidings being used for car storage more than anything else.
That is true but railroad sidings to industrial locations still exist and perhaps if railroad freight service was proposed there may be new customers who would sign up for it. If there is no potential for oil or intermodal freight and no warehouses or distribution centers along the line, then things resort to tourist passenger use only.This takes me back to the original point that all businesses must be profitable to survive. The investment to restore Cape May service probably does not justify the revenue gained from small summer tourist traffic right now..
The people who did the damage to the line should be responsible for the repair work but if they have no assets then restitution cannot be done but did NJT have any theft insurance on the line?
I still maintain that it is time for a non-profit railroad operation to raise funding and have volunteers running the trains. Tony would not have to move aside and could still keep his operation. The formula is already there and being employed by 100's of tourist lines and museums across the country. This summer we have a trip booked on the Royal Gorge Tourist train. Our tickets cost $66 each and it is a three hour journey with amenities like a dome car, lounge car and dining car/food service. If a museum ran long excursions like a Cape May to Tuckahoe tourist train, and jazzed up service a bit, they could probably get $40 a ticket.
Its certainly not beneficial and I do not wish to blame or fault Tony Macrie for the current status of the line, but the line to Cape May lies dormant and solutions should be sought.