by SouthernRailway
I took Brightline in Florida yesterday and was blown away: it's a premium service, with "Select" (i.e., first class) service offering in-station lounges and premium service onboard, with free-flowing drinks and food and spacious seating. It's like having an airline lounge membership and flying first class. Yet the train runs for only about 70 miles and about an hour and 15 minutes each way. My "Select" car was pretty full--and "Select" seemed to do more business than standard class. This indicates a demand for premium service even for short-haul trips.
So, a question:
Given the wealthy customer base in many counties around NYC, why aren't Metro-North and CtDOT passenger rail (and the LIRR and NJ Transit) offering a premium class of service, with nicer in-station reserved areas and better on-board service? I'd pay for that, and my Brightline trip indicated that there is a demand for it. Surely a premium class of service could be priced so that the per-passenger subsidy is lower than regular class, or eliminated.
Perhaps the New Haven Line at rush hour doesn't have space for another class of service with lower-density seating, but other lines do, or they would if single-level cars were replaced with bi-levels. And Grand Central certainly has space for an in-station lounge or the like.
So, a question:
Given the wealthy customer base in many counties around NYC, why aren't Metro-North and CtDOT passenger rail (and the LIRR and NJ Transit) offering a premium class of service, with nicer in-station reserved areas and better on-board service? I'd pay for that, and my Brightline trip indicated that there is a demand for it. Surely a premium class of service could be priced so that the per-passenger subsidy is lower than regular class, or eliminated.
Perhaps the New Haven Line at rush hour doesn't have space for another class of service with lower-density seating, but other lines do, or they would if single-level cars were replaced with bi-levels. And Grand Central certainly has space for an in-station lounge or the like.