GOP Seeks Bidders on Amtrak Rail Lines

Maybe if Mica and his henchmen's bill passes the NEC will go up on Ebay. Starting at 3 easy payments of $29.95!

frostyorange wrote:

Jtgshu wrote:Seems fishy to me...........seems to be just yet another attempt of gutting Amtrak and the gov't getting out of the railroad business, which is exactly the opposite of what we need here, especially with regard to the NEC.

I totally agree. Sadly there is a lot of people in powerful offices confusing "good for businesses" and "good for the people". It makes one wonder where their priorities really lie.

and a lot of people confuse "good for business" with "good for some businesses"

Well, with the Dems in control of the senate(by a small margin), I would imagine that Mica's proposal will have a tough time being passed in congress.

Wait until after the 2012 elections, and see what happens.

MikeEspee wrote:Maybe if Mica and his henchmen's bill passes the NEC will go up on Ebay. Starting at 3 easy payments of $29.95!

John MIca has henchmen?

Otto Vondrak wrote:

Milwaukee_F40C wrote:It is possible for private passenger rail to be profitable in certain conditions...

Examples, please? Limited to America, if possible, please.

Please stop ignoring my request for more information. In 2011, what private common carrier passenger rail is profitable?

note: I said "please."

-otto-

Otto Vondrak wrote:

Otto Vondrak wrote:

Milwaukee_F40C wrote:It is possible for private passenger rail to be profitable in certain conditions...

Examples, please? Limited to America, if possible, please.

Please stop ignoring my request for more information. In 2011, what private common carrier passenger rail is profitable?

note: I said "please."

-otto-

Does the Tokyo-Osaka Shinkansen route count?

I said it is *possible* that passenger rail can be profitable. There is obviously no private passenger rail currently in existence, which does not mean that it won't happen if conditions are favorable. However, there are a couple of debatable examples of profitability in Amtrak. And there are historical examples of common carriers operating profitable passenger routes, even in the long distance market when highways and aviation were already popular.

If they want to privatize amtrak, then privatize everything else too. Level playing field.

If anything we should be nationalizing some things, like the oil companies. Talk about a cash cow, i don't think we'd ever need to worry about any transportation funding ever again in that scenario.

It would be very interesting to see what effect privatization of the highway and air travel systems would have. How many people are aware that airports are subsidized?

Can you imagine if it was divided evenly?

gprimr1 wrote:It would be very interesting to see what effect privatization of the highway and air travel systems would have. How many people are aware that airports are subsidized?

Do you have some data I could read over? I'm interested in learning more.

once the nec is opened up to competition it would only be fair to move onto opening all freight lines to competition . Open access , providing its profitable of course . I'm sure these denziens of free market principles will agree thats a good idea .

Gentlemen, it's refreshing, but also a little unsettling, to see some contention and exchange of ideas returning to a place that's grown a little too quiet in recent months. However, I hope some of the newer participants will understand that a whole-lotta work went into making this forum a showplace for mature, documentable, and respectful discussion.

For the record, I'll turn 62 at the end of the summer, and have some postings dating back as far as the "original" railroad.net (c.1998). Two of my earliest memories date from witnessing the last steam operation on the PRR branch along which I grew up, and being allowed to stay up late and watch a little of the 1956 election returns with my father.

Railroading and statecraft ... they fit together naturally.

What's more, some of us were also lucky enough to witness the first (and to date, still the finest) attempt at an examinaton of the industry from a pespective outside the exclusive domain of either labor or management; I'm referring, of course, to the writings of the late David P. Morgan and the unique group of contributors he assembled at Trains magazine during a time that paralelled the private industry's darkest hour.

So some of us had a more-or-less direct window, though that remarkable crew, on the last days of the "old" rail industry with steam, LD passengers, multiple-track mains, block towers, etc. We didn't have scanners, ATCS, simulation models, and all of today's goodies, but a lot of us had a nearby tower or train order office where we were introduced to the craft.

And as I have pointed out before, if one forms a basic knowledge of economics and sociology at around the age of twelve, you now have to be in your forties, at least, to have had exposure to those times..

We are extremely fortunate to have gained both a fine group of regulars, including a few form other parts of the globe, and a handful of dedicated moderators who have helped this exchange break new ground. To Mssrs Vondrak, Perkowski, Hallstead, Grossman, and especially Mr. Gilbert Norman, let me add one more sincere "Thanks".

To all the rest, by all means, let's keep things going, but let's remember that civility and serious exploration of the facts should always be the order of the day.