Anyone holding interest in the future of Northeast passenger rail - commuter agency and/or Amtrak, should read this article appearing today in The New York Times .
Fair Use:
We could be looking easily five years after the "COVID All Clear" sounds for all operators to see pre-COVID traffic levels return.
Finally, lest we forget. airlines are not expecting their pre-COVID traffic for three years after such time.
Fair Use:
.Even as the coronavirus pandemic appears to recede in New York, corporations have been reluctant to call their workers back to their skyscrapers and are showing even more hesitation about committing to the city long term.Do not underestimate the impact upon the three commuter agencies, as well as Amtrak, that these developments will have.
Fewer than 10 percent of New York’s office workers had returned as of last month and just a quarter of major employers expect to bring their people back by the end of the year, according to a new survey. Only 54 percent of these companies say they will return by July 2021.
Demand for office space has slumped. Lease signings in the first eight months of the year were about half of what they were a year earlier. That is putting the office market on track for a 20-year low for the full year. When companies do sign, many are opting for short-term contracts that most landlords would have rejected in February.
We could be looking easily five years after the "COVID All Clear" sounds for all operators to see pre-COVID traffic levels return.
Finally, lest we forget. airlines are not expecting their pre-COVID traffic for three years after such time.