Hi Bob,

On Sun 2037-Aug-02 06:30, Bob Ackley (1:300/3) wrote to Bob Sakowski:

 BS> Key point, railroads wanted and threatened to cease passenger service.

BA> Another key point:  the railroad passenger service could not compete
BA> with the government subsidized airlines.  Yes, subsidized airlines;
BA> the government provides
BA> them with terminals (for which they pay nothing approaching the cost
BA> of building and maintaining) and traffic control (for which they pay
BA> nothing that approaches the cost of).  Long haul truckers get
BA> similar breaks from the government, which  provides them with
BA> roadways and doesn't charge them nearly what the cost of the damage
BA> they cause to those roadways is.  OTOH, railroads are required to
BA> build and maintain their own facilities, including rights of way and
BA> passenger terminals,
BA> without government help - and pay taxes on them.

INdeed, and acquiring that right-of-way and maintaining it
is very expensive.

Also, consider that the infrastructure for airports and the
interstate highway system both were developed as a result of pushing the
public's fear button.  I.E> we must be able to
rapidly deploy men and materiel wherever they're needed,
because "the reds are coming the reds are coming."

NOw what's a real leg slapper in all of this is that the air traffic
control system is overloaded, unable to keep up,
unable to meet demand.  IT's going to require a major
overhaul in the next decade or two, and you and I get to pay for it.

 BS> Should the govt have said OK and not do anything about the thousands
 BS> of commuters using the rails, primarily in the northeast?

BA> I don't know that the railroads proposed to abandon those commuter
BA> runs.  I do know
BA> that the railroads wanted to get out of long distance passenger
BA> service. 

Indeed they did.  They would have happily kept the short
haul stuff, such as along the eastern seaboard in that
corridor where profit margins were good.

YOu know, it's funny, but in my family this was standard
dinner table conversation back in those years, as members of my family
worked both in the trucking and railroad
industries.

Regards,
           Richard
--- timEd 1.10.y2k+