trainmaster611 wrote:I agree that more traffic north of Jacksonville would be generated but where did you get those numbers?
I understand the nature of consultant contracts and the problem of scope creep. The consultant for the State of Florida was paid to estimate the number of trips generated in Florida between Miami and Jacksonville. The consultant wasn't paid to estimate the number of trips that would be generated from points north of Jacksonville. Certainly there will be some.
I have my own methods of estimating ridership. Not having access to all of the data, it involves a certain level of 'gut'. I'm not going to go into that now. Amtrak has a proprietary method for estimating long-distance ridership. It's really up to them to crunch the numbers and prepare for the passengers that a new service down the FEC would bring. (Although if they are short on number-crunchers, I'm available.) It would be a shame if all of these new stations along the Atlantic coast were to open up and potential passengers from New York couldn't get there because all the seats were taken in Virginia.
John Stolberg