Pensyfan19 wrote: ↑Wed Mar 18, 2020 5:07 pmKind of reminds me how Amtrak is doing so far with decreased ridership and being threatened with budget cuts, especially after losing the Hoosier State last year.
I would describe the termination of the
Hoosier State as a net gain. A perpetually late train with a perpetually stubborn political sponsor. Allowing the train to finally die allowed Amtrak to show other communities that, "yes" they will in fact terminate service in places that refuse to pay the mandated PRIIA formula.
No fiscal gymnastics there. "You don't pay, we don't run." Doesn't get much simpler than that. Some of the Indiana political class will be pleased with themselves but when Ohio finally decides to fund their own corridor trains and won't pickup Indiana passengers (or drop them off on the way home) they won't feel so smart.
This has finally begun to happen in New Hampshire where it has come to the attention of legislators after years of waiting that nobody besides them will pay for a train to Concord.
Avelia Liberty is likewise going to be something of a game changer in its own right. When Amtrak pulls this off a lot of other communities are going to start screaming for high speed rail. If the service can pay for itself and make the loan payments then the question from Congress (This ones for you Virginia) will be, "When do we get one?" As opposed to "How will we pay for it?".
The reduction in energy consumption and the far greater availability of equipment constitutes an imminent paradigm shift. This is something which I don't think is fully appreciated at all.
