Gilbert B Norman wrote:Needless to say, the only computer I own is this Dell desktop from which i now write; so I have to ask in all sincerity, is this "need" for wi-fi as prevalent through any societal demographic or is it mostly within a young, computer savvy demographic that frequent discussion boards such as here?
I of course note that Amtrak is spending "heap big wampum" to add wi-fi to both Amfleet and Acela cars. It almost seems to me that Amtrak was slow to "wake up and smell the other guy's coffee brewing' and that if they don't get their own kettle on the fire, they will lose many a potential rider.
Thoughts, discussion, anyone?
Not just the young folk. I would add anyone who grew up in the PC and computer age and has laptops, tablet computers, smartphones and the like. Got to access the cloud!
It is has become rather simple from a business perspective: Amtrak has to add WiFi in order to compete or else be seen as way behind the times. With the Megabuses and Boltbuses on one front and with the airlines on the other. (The airlines won't have free WiFi, but then again, they would charge extra for enough oxygen to keep people awake if they could get away with it). With retail chains like McDonalds and Starbucks offering free WiFi, people are coming to expect WiFi access where ever they go, at least when they are in sight of civilization.
As for spending heap big wampum, looking at the FY11 and FY12 budget plans, the cost of the WiFi is not that big; at least, not from my viewpoint.
For FY11, the budget for WiFi System Wide for the Regionals and California cars was/is $7.2 million. There is $2.6 million for Media Delivery on Trains to enable delivery of onboard media (movies, music, games) for a new revenue stream and information for on board announcement systems.
For FY12, the budget for WiFi system wide is $13.5 million. This is to complete installation on the other corridor and the long distance fleets. Another $4.5 million for Media Delivery on Trains. They state that WiFi will contribute an incremental 2% in ticket revenue for Acela and Amfleet 1 services. Probably a over conservative number in my opinion, but one that is hard to prove one way or the other to that level of detail even with market surveys.
By way of comparison, the Point of Sale system to automate and track food and beverage operations throughout Amtrak is budgeted at $7.9M in the FY12 budget plan.