by SouthernRailway
Given the following facts:
1. Amtrak allegedly breaks even on its Northeast Regional trains.
2. Bus lines are growing by offering very low cost service around the Northeast, and they are diverting at least some business from rail.
3. Commuter train operators such as NJ Transit are under severe budget pressure.
4. Other railroads in Europe offer discount train service, sometimes by using old, high-density equipment.
5. NJ Transit and Metro-North already cooperate by offering trains to football games in the Meadowlands.
Why don't Northeastern commuter railroads team up and offer discount train service all the way from Boston to NYC to Washington, at least on weekends, using spare commuter train equipment? Or why doesn't Amtrak offer this service, by leasing spare commuter train equipment on weekends?
If Comet railcars offer about 40% more seating than Amfleet Is do, and if "discount" train service could do without a café car, it seems to me that tickets could be priced at about 40% less than Northeast Regional tickets are, and the train operator could maybe make a profit.
I assume that capacity of the Hudson River tunnels would be an impediment to this, and so this type of service would just require extending existing NJ Transit service so that additional tunnel slots aren't used.
Thoughts?
1. Amtrak allegedly breaks even on its Northeast Regional trains.
2. Bus lines are growing by offering very low cost service around the Northeast, and they are diverting at least some business from rail.
3. Commuter train operators such as NJ Transit are under severe budget pressure.
4. Other railroads in Europe offer discount train service, sometimes by using old, high-density equipment.
5. NJ Transit and Metro-North already cooperate by offering trains to football games in the Meadowlands.
Why don't Northeastern commuter railroads team up and offer discount train service all the way from Boston to NYC to Washington, at least on weekends, using spare commuter train equipment? Or why doesn't Amtrak offer this service, by leasing spare commuter train equipment on weekends?
If Comet railcars offer about 40% more seating than Amfleet Is do, and if "discount" train service could do without a café car, it seems to me that tickets could be priced at about 40% less than Northeast Regional tickets are, and the train operator could maybe make a profit.
I assume that capacity of the Hudson River tunnels would be an impediment to this, and so this type of service would just require extending existing NJ Transit service so that additional tunnel slots aren't used.
Thoughts?